Just days after celebrating the long awaited reopening of the B6261 into Orton after 18 weeks of work by Electricity North West, villagers have been informed they will be without electricity on 5th November to allow engineers to upgrade overhead power cables ahead of the coming winter — meaning another day of lost trade for local businesses.
The road had been closed to traffic for weeks to enable construction work to reinforce the electricity network around Tebay, resulting in a lengthy diversion via Kendal for motorists travelling to and from Orton between 10th June and 19th October.
Shortly after David Kennedy, director of the Orton chocolate factory and coffee house, had unfurled a banner where the road enters the village at its north west side to promote business as usual, villagers received notification they would be without electricity on 5th November for the power cable work.
Some 149 addresses in the area received a card from the electricity company saying they needed to cut power from 8-30am to 3-30pm to enable engineers to “work safely as they upgrade our overhead power lines, to make sure we can continue to provide a reliable network supply to your property”.
Mr Kennedy said: “We had already noticed an upturn in customers this week since the banner went up. Now this is another lost day for us after the whole of the summer.
“We can do a bit when the power is off but we won’t be able to run the coffee shop. We only have a small generator, so we won’t be able to make anything in the factory. We will have to stick to wrapping and packing and making up boxes.”
Electricity North West said they were working hard to minimise the impact of the power cut.
A spokesman for the company told the Herald: “We’re investing £80,000 in Orton’s electricity network to add some long-term resilience before winter to reduce the likelihood of unplanned power cuts.
“The work involves replacing 11 electricity poles and around a kilometre of overhead line, as well as cutting back trees near the network which could cause power cuts in high winds. Unfortunately this work can only be done by switching power off so that our engineers can work safely.
“We understand that a number of businesses were impacted recently by nearby roadworks and we are working to minimise disruption during this unrelated essential work.
“We have provided 10 days’ notice to help people prepare and we are also working with local businesses to see if we can provide hot food and drinks to people affected.
“We’re also providing a generator for the school but unfortunately can’t do this for every property due to the layout of the network.
“We had an engineer visiting the area on Thursday to see if there is anything else we can do to minimise disruption and we will have customer service representatives on hand during the work to help things go as smoothly as possible. We encourage anyone with any additional needs to contact us direct by calling 105 so we can provide tailored support.”
Mr Kennedy said he was relieved to see the road reopened.
Speaking at the road end as he gathered with staff to erect the banner, He added: “It is great to see the road open again but it is just a shame at the timing of the closure during the tourist season.
“We are hoping that the school half-term will give us a much needed boost.
“The closure badly impacted the business and could not have come at a worse time as we’re having to deal with the increased cost of cocao worldwide, and higher utilities bills.
“It has definitely affected our Christmas preparations and means our stock will be reduced.”
Westmorland and Lonsdale MP Tim Farron said: “This is seriously debilitating to businesses in Orton and extremely inconvenient for residents throughout the village.
“I’ve raised my concerns directly to the chief executive of ENW.”
