From cracked stone walls to blood-curdling screams - a resident from Chalford has spoken out at a lack of concern for health and safety during a broadband installation on the village’s high street.

“It’s been an absolute fiasco”, said Amanda Strover, who lives on Chalford High Street where work began on Monday, May 21.

“We have had damage to our properties, a serious accident involving one of the young workers, and intolerable vibration in our house.”

Amanda’s complaints are directed at work carried out on behalf of Gigaclear, an ultrafast broadband provider which has promised high speeds for the area.

“Residents in the Chalford Hill community will soon be able to enjoy ultrafast, full fibre broadband,” Matthew Hare, chief executive of Gigaclear, told the SNJ when approached for comment.

“We look forward to seeing how world class speeds of up to 1Gbps (1,000Mbps), transform the lives of those who take the service.”

But, for Amanda, the cable laying, which is being done by Complete Utilities, has come at the cost of disruption.

First on her list of complaints is that, according to Amanda, residents were given “little warning” work was commencing.

“We had a letter on Friday, May 18 to say the road was being closed and we’d all need to park elsewhere.

“I work from home so they gave me zero working days to arrange work elsewhere.”

Next, she says she has had damage like scuffs and cracks to at least two areas of the stone wall outside her house.

Then, on May 23, a worker, lying on his stomach in the road reaching in to a trench, had his legs run over by a digger.

A rapid response vehicle, an ambulance and an air ambulance rushed to the scene at midday.

“Luckily, the driver had heard the blood-curdling screams and stopped in time,” according to Amanda - the man was driven by ambulance to Gloucester Royal Hospital with a minor leg injury.

“There were too many workers and too much machinery in a confined space - an accident waiting to happen.”

Amanda has since been visited by representatives of Gigaclear to inspect the damage and offer apologies..

“We apologise for any disruption caused to local residents during the installation of our full fibre broadband network,” Gigaclear said in a statement.

“We always aim to ensure that all work is carried out to the highest standards with safety front of mind, whilst keeping any disruption to a minimum.

“We have worked with Complete Utilities, the contractor used to lay the fibre cables, to address this and other concerns raised by residents, and we can confirm that each one has been taken very seriously and is being addressed appropriately.”

Unfortunately for Amanda, the disruption has not been worth having faster internet speeds.

“All this for a super sonic broadband that we don’t need,” she said.