LYNN, Ala. — A significant internet outage has left the town of Lynn in Winston County struggling without service for more than a week. The disruption began on June 23 when a mobile home collided with a utility pole near a railroad crossing, causing utility lines to fall.
Jared Tittle, a resident, said, “It’s not just our household, it’s the whole community is out of service, none of us have internet.”
The outage is affecting 58 households in the town of just over 800 people, nearly one in five households. Businesses are also feeling the impact. Bryan Kirkpatrick, Chief of Police in Lynn, said, “Basic supply has been down the whole week because of it. Consolidated Forest Products, they ended up having to go buy Starlink to continue operations.”
TDS, the internet provider, confirmed that repairs are delayed due to the need to coordinate with utility and railroad companies to raise power lines and then elevate their fiber line to meet train clearance requirements. However, there is no definite timeline for when repairs will be completed.
Kirkpatrick expressed frustration, saying, “We haven’t been given a reason for what the delay is.” He also noted that the outage is part of a larger issue, as Lynn currently has only one internet provider. “They’re just tired of being without phones and internet because a lot of elderly folks still have landlines and they don’t have a landline now,” he said.
The outage has also affected the fire department’s administrative operations in part of town, but Kirkpatrick stressed that there is no impact on emergency response or public safety.
Alabama Power stated that its pole has been re-installed and power to the rail line has been restored, indicating they are no longer involved in the internet outage. Norfolk Southern is reportedly looking into the issue, but further details are awaited.