Hotel still without phones and wi-fi after storm

Phillipa Carson runs Mabie House Hotel with her family

A family-run hotel and wedding venue near Dumfries has been left without phone and broadband access for almost three weeks, after being hit by Storm Éowyn.

The owners of Mabie House Hotel say they are losing business because potential customers cannot easily get in touch with them.

Elsewhere, in the village of Thornhill, a woman who juggles caring for her elderly mother with working full-time as a project manager is also waiting to be reconnected.

Openreach said fallen trees had caused both issues and engineers were working to rectify the problems as quickly as possible.

Mabie House Hotel has been without phones and internet access since the storm

Mabie House Hotel lost power for about 24 hours when Storm Éowyn hit on 24 January, forcing it to turn guests away and throw away a large quantity of food.

When power was restored the following day, owner Phillipa Carson realised the phones and wi-fi were not working.

The hotel's telecoms provider diverted its phone number to Ms Carson's personal mobile but it is resulting in a lot of missed calls.

The venue normally has three booking and inquiry lines but now, with just one phone to receive calls, some customers are just hearing an engaged tone.

And when Ms Carson calls them back from her personal phone, she said some customers don't pick up as they do not recognise her number.

"We had someone phone up just on Monday asking 'What's going on? Why are you shut? We've been phoning, trying to get through to you' and they've not realised."

"We're definitely losing business," she added.

Openreach said about 11 properties had been affected after a tree came down and damaged a pole.

"The pole will need to be reseated or replaced, with new cable installed," a spokesperson said.

They apologised for the disruption but said pole replacements are complex and take time.

Meanwhile a woman who lives near Thornhill says she has also been without her phone and broadband service since Storm Éowyn.

Elaine Serjeant, who works from home full-time while caring for her mother, who has Alzheimer's, said she was hugely frustrated.

Elaine Serjeant juggles caring responsibilities with full time work from home

"I've got my mum at home who's got stage five Alzheimer's so she cannot be left unsupervised, we've got carers coming in, and we've got my horses at home as well," she said.

"So I can't just be out sitting in cafes all day working. The nature of my job also I can't let people see what I'm working on, so it's difficult."

She said the 4G signal at the house was too weak to enable her to work properly from home and she has had to spend money on another contract for mobile data.

Openreach said a fallen tree damaged part of the overhead network, affecting 13 properties, and a cable will need to be replaced.

"Our engineers are working to carry out the works as soon as possible," a spokesperson said. "We're sorry for the disruption this is causing."