Seven days of no service from Vodacom

We have been without an internet connection for 7 days now. We called Vodacom many times and after a whole lot of troubleshooting they suggested we take the device to a Vodacom shop. We later realised that we cannot connect to the internet using mobile data on our phones. So, no one checked whether our area is experiencing signal issues. When we tried to call again we were received by an automated message informing us that we have been blocked from calling the Vodacom helpline. I reached out to Vodacom on Twitter and I was just told that technicians are working to resolve the network issue (more automated messages). We got no estimate as to when we can expect to be reconnected. Are we receiving such poor service because we are a small town in rural Eastern Cape? I doubt that this would happen in Sandton or Greenpoint. 7 days! Careers and livelihoods are suffering.