AN ENTIRE village in South Somerset was cut off without broadband or phone connectivity for nearly two weeks since the impact of Storm Bert.

Residents of Chaffcombe near Chard expressed their anger towards Openreach at the delay taken to resolve the situation, which happened on Saturday, November 23, 2024.

The branch of a large tree damaged the broadband and phone cables connecting over 200 households in the village, cutting off residents’ access to the internet and telephone usage.

Villagers gathered at Chaffcombe Village Hall on December 3, 2024, to outline their frustrations at the delay.

One resident, Val Bracher, spoke of the potential knock-on medical effects the outage might have.

Val said: “I am waiting to have knee surgery and I have also been told I need to see a cardiologist. Appointments are sent by phone, email or text, and if I don’t receive them and cannot reply, I am afraid I will be taken off the list.”

Chaffcombe is in an area with limited mobile connectivity, where 4G services are patchy and the installation of fibre broadband has taken years to secure.

For resident Paul Selly, the impact has been “severe” for his wife, who is undergoing treatment for cancer. He said: “This outage means her treatment is not progressing as it should be, as I can’t easily speak with the hospital.”

It’s a similar situation for Mike Miles and his wife, who have both been unable to contact the pharmacy to sort out their medication. “We’re running short”, Mike commented.

Read More: Storm Bert: Record 76 mph gust recorded in Somerset

Residents have also expressed their concerns about contacting emergency services when broadband, landline and mobile services are affected.

Villager Paul Haskins, who has previously had a cardiac arrest, said he would be “unable to get an ambulance” if he needed one.

For villagers who work from home, the impact has been challenging. Mike Otterbeck runs an online business, and says he’s been unable to operate “at the busiest time of year”.

Other residents, including Vice Chairman of the Parish Council, Geraldine Wills, have cited a lack of communication from Openreach about the near two-week outage. “Openreach should make more effort to pass on correct and up to date information”, Geraldine added.  

Adam Dance, MP for Yeovil, said that it was "simply unacceptable" for rural communities, like Chaffcombe, that rely heavily on broadband and phone services.

He added: "Access to reliable connectivity is not just a convenience; it’s essential for work, education, healthcare, and staying in touch with loved ones."

“I am deeply concerned about the impact this has had on residents and businesses in the area. I’ve already raised concerns about the resilience of our infrastructure and will continue to push for long-overdue upgrades to ensure this doesn’t happen again."

"I urge OpenReach to not only resolve this issue quickly but to invest in future-proofing connectivity in South Somerset.

“I’d like to thank the residents of Chaffcombe for their patience and perseverance during such a frustrating time, and I’ll be following this situation closely to ensure they get the service they deserve", Adam Dance ended. 

In response to a request for comment, an Openreach spokesperson said: “Broadband services have now been fully restored in the village of Chaffcombe following an incident on 24 November, when a fallen tree caused significant damage to the local telecommunications infrastructure and interruption of broadband service to around 48 homes and businesses."

They continued: "The repair process was complex and involved specialist engineers and equipment to remove the fallen tree, assess the damage, and replace the affected cables and equipment.  We are grateful for the patience and understanding shown by the residents of Chaffcombe during this period."

"It’s also important to remember that vulnerable status (which can prioritise repair work in an outage) is determined by the provider; if you think you or a family member should be given this status, please register with your provider”.