Shropshire hamlet still without phone lines after storms
People living and working in a Shropshire hamlet have been left without phone lines for two weeks after they were damaged in storms and high winds.
No timescale has been set for when the work to replace 60 metres of damaged cables in Lower Frankton, near Ellesmere, will be carried out.
The phone lines were taken down by BT engineers in the aftermath of the storms which battered Britain earlier this month, which left the cable sagging.
People living in the area have today spoken of their frustration at the situation, claiming pensioners have been left with no contact to the outside world and businesses with no access to the internet on which they depend.
Officials at BT said about 15 homes had been affected and said plans were being devised to replace the phone lines safely. A tree fell across a road in the hamlet on February 12 at the height of the storms – but phone lines were not affected until three days later.
Carole Main, who runs a business with her husband from her home, said the tree was removed and the telephone wire left sagging on the hedge. The phone lines were still working, she said.
"But a neighbour saw a BT engineer at the site on the Saturday and he said he was having to cut the line as it looked dangerous. Since then we have had no telephone lines and no matter how many times people complain we still have don't know when the lines will be restored.
"Businesses like ours depend on the internet totally. The mobile phone signal is appalling in Lower Frankton. I am also having to drive into Ellemsere to use Wifi."
But Mrs Main said she was more concerned about two pensioners, including a 93-year-old woman, who do not have mobile phones. "The landlines really are their lifelines," she said.
Emma Tennant, spokeswoman for BT, said: "We need to replace a section of overhead cable of about 60 metres in length. People affected should contact their service provider – whoever they pay their bill to –to see if they can divert incoming calls to an alternative number while the repairs are being done."
