Melted joints and cables as lightning cuts internet

Flash flooding in Highland Perthshire left residents without internet access for more than a week.

Damage in and around Pitlochry damaged digital infrastructure, leaving many without internet. Swathes of the town have been affected by 75 separate faults.

A BT Openreach spokesperson said: “We’ve experienced unprecedented damage to our network in Pitlochry and across Perthshire due to last week’s severe and prolonged lightning storms.

“Our engineers are still uncovering melted joints and cables and even poles that have been split in two in the wake of the severe weather.

“Our engineers are working flat out to get to everyone affected and we’re bringing in extra people to join our local workforce on the ground.

We’re really sorry for the disruption to service the storm has wrought.

“Repairs to lightning damage are often painstaking and time-consuming, as it can cause multiple faults at various points on a single line.”

Openreach bosses say that in some cases residents’ equipment may have been blown by lightning but the line may not be affected.

Engineers are urging people to unplug the existing equipment and test the line with a different modem or phone to establish if an engineering visit is needed.

Pete Wishart MP said: “I understand that whilst BT have been trying to fix this, some customers have reported having their internet restored only for it to go off again an hour later.

“Obviously this is totally unacceptable at any time, but very concerning given the number of people working from home.”