Internet access restored after Orkney broadband cable repairs

Internet services have been restored to Orkney islands which had been affected by a broken subsea cable.

The issue, which started last month, affected the cable running between Evie and Westray.

It left hundreds of people in areas such as Sanday and Stronsay without internet access.

BT Group, which owns the subsea cable, said repairs had now been completed.

The fibre network had been down for about 500 customers in the North Isles.

A specialist repair ship was called in but needed a run of several clear weather days to complete the work.

The cause was attributed to wear and tear due to the challenging conditions of the rocky seabed in the Pentland Firth.

The cable has been re-routed in a bid to reduce the risk of the problem repeating. BT Group said in a statement: "We can confirm that the cable has now been repaired and services restored to Orkney's North Isles.

"We would like to apologise once again for the disruption and thank local communities for their patience throughout this period."