Elderly and vulnerable residents in a North Yorkshire village have been without broadband for five weeks, with a permanent fix still not made.
Seven homes on Lowcross Drive, Great Broughton, have had no broadband since September 4, leaving some residents unable to use vital medical alert bracelets.
Five homes have been reconnected after firm Quickline installed free temporary connections, but Openreach doesn't expect a premanent repair to be made until later this week.
Valerie Painter said many of her Lowcross Drive neighbours are in their 80s, with some nearing 90.
She said previously: "There are nine houses on the street, and seven don't have internet. Four out of the seven have medi-bands that are lifelines just in case they fall.
George and Val Painter (Image: QUICKLINE)
"One resident has had a fall since the internet outage.
"People have come and gone to try and fix it but to no avail.
"We've just been left without internet.
"It's not good enough."
Val says she'd previously been told internet would come back on on September 29, but two weeks later connection is still yet to be restored.
The Lowcross Drive street sign (Image: ANDY FUTERS/NORTHERN ECHO)
Openreach apologised and said a third party damaged its cable while trying to unblock a duct.
A spokesperson said temporary traffic lights were needed for engineers to unblock the duct and repair the cable safely and work would be completed within days.
Val and husband George welcomed the Quickline stepping in to offer a temporary connection, having previously been unable to watch their smart TV.
The Lowcross Drive street sign (Image: ANDY FUTERS/NORTHERN ECHO)
She said the temporary service worked “extremely well” and made a “huge difference” to residents without broadband.
Quickline learned about the residents’ problems at a Great Broughton Parish Council meeting on September 15. After the meeting, stakeholder engagement manager Mark Furnass became the residents’ main contact.
Engineers installed temporary broadband at five of the seven homes without service.
The connections also restored internet-linked personal alarms, reassuring elderly residents and their families. The remaining two households were offered the temporary service but declined.
Lowcross Drive, Great Broughton has been without internet for almost three weeks (Image: ANDY FUTERS/NORTHERN ECHO)
Mr Furnass said: "When we heard what was happening in Great Broughton, particularly that some of the residents were elderly and relied on their broadband connections for personal safety alarms, we wanted to see if there was anything we could do to help.
The Quickline team on site (Image: QUICKLINE)
"Broadband isn't just about watching television or browsing the internet. For many people, it's how they stay in touch with loved ones, access essential services and, in some cases, maintain an important lifeline.
The Lowcross Drive street sign
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"We were fortunate that our fixed wireless network could provide an alternative connection, so we worked with our engineering team to get five of the households back online.
"We're providing those connections free of charge until the original fault is repaired. It was simply about doing the right thing and helping people in a difficult situation.
"We're really pleased we've been able to make a difference."