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Many islanders are still without working telephones since a raft of lighting strikes damaged the network nearly two weeks ago.

 

Broadband and internet services also down in places.

 

Villagers in the Callanish and Ness districts are amongst those affected.

 

It could be January before a full service is restored to all, it is understood.

 

Utility company BT said it has drafted in 60 extra engineers from across the UK to help tackle a mammoth backlog of repair work in the Highlands and Islands.

 

Engineers are working all hours including over weekends to try and get people reconnected.

 

About 100 engineers will be undertaking repairs over the traditional festive public holidays with BT paying overtime for staff to work extra hours.

 

In some cases, people cannot dial out but are receiving incoming calls.

 

 

Other households can only phone out.  Many users report a complete communication blackout.

 

A BT spokesman said a significant number of phone faults have been reported.

 

He said: “These are exceptional circumstances and the situation is particularly bad in places.

 

“We are trying to clear the backlog. Some faults will take a while before we can get people back online.”

 

However, “repair lead times are considerably extended at the moment.”

 

Lightning strikes blew sockets out of walls and took down overhead lines, said BT.

 

The spokesman explained: “Lightning damage can be very devastating and can take much longer to repair compared to ordinary faults.”

 

He pointed out the telecom system is not like the electricity grid network where a single repair to one part can get thousands of homes reconnected in one go.

 

Engineers can fix one line problem just to discover multiple faults elsewhere on the same line, he added.

 

He said: “It is painstaking work. Repairs take a long time. Sometimes, its several days or weeks before faults emerge.”

 

“We can only get one line back on at a time.”

 

 

Households without phone service for weeks

24  December 2014