Phone lines hit by lightning are still unconnected (From Knutsford Guardian)

Phone lines hit by lightning are still unconnected

2:20pm Thursday 2nd August 2012 in News By David Morgan

BT has publicly apologised for the second time to Ollerton residents, who have been cut off from their phone connection for almost a month.

As reported in the Guardian, people in School Lane have had no phone line and internet since July 6, due to a cable damaged by a lighting strike and bad weather.

A spokesman for BT said that it was originally hoped that the lines would be reconnected on July 24.

But more than a week later frustrated residents are still waiting, and a new date for the repair has not yet been offered.

Alison Bell, of School Lane, is one of those affected and is facing mounting mobile phone bills to keep in touch with her family and friends.

“It’s just diabolical,” she said.

“I just don’t know what to do about it.

“There are people in their 80s who live here and who have no other means of communicating at all.”

Due to a spate of heavy downpours in early July, engineers said they were unable to investigate the fault in Ollerton straight away.

They then encountered blockages caused by silt and excess water and further damage to the network.

A spokesman for BT said: “Engineers working on this repair have encountered more blockages, which must be cleared before the painstaking part of laying the new cable and reconnecting customers can be completed.

“Although this repair is taking longer than we would like or expect, I have been advised that such delays are not unusual after a lightning strike, as such incidents can often cause more damage than might be originally thought.

“We apologise for the unforeseen delays, due to further unexpected engineering challenges.”

A spokesman for BT also advised School Lane residents to contact their service providers to check if they entitled to compensation, following the long wait for reconnection.