Jill Schramm/MDN A mailbox on 35th Avenue Southeast in Minot has its red flag up Wednesday to indicate outgoing mail. Delivery service was restored this week to a southeast Minot postal route that had been experiencing severe delays that have been attributed to a Postal Service staffing shortage.

Residents served by a southeast Minot postal route are hopeful that regular mail service this past week signals an end to weeks of sporadic delivery.

Residents east of John Hoeven Elementary and those living in The Bluffs area have registered complaints in recent weeks over mail delivery issues that had worsened since initially becoming irregular last summer.

Resident Kari Thompson said a week ago that she was still waiting for tax documents. Typically, residents can go for days without mail and then get it all delivered at once, she said.

Resident Ardy Langord said she has been grateful for this week’s postal deliveries after receiving mail only two or three times in a recent three-week period. Waiting for a prescription to arrive, she was prepared to borrow medicine from a neighbor when her medications arrived just as she exhausted her on-hand supply.

Some residents filed complaints with the postal service and with U.S. Sen. John Hoeven’s office, which researched the concerns.

“We raised the issues with mail and newspaper delivery in the Minot area to USPS officials locally and in D.C.,” Hoeven said in a prepared comment. “According to the Postal Service, delivery is now on time for the affected route, and the disruptions were due to lack of staffing. We understand the challenges associated with hiring and will continue to support the Postal Service in finding the workforce it needs. At the same time, USPS officials need to communicate and be transparent with the public so they can have confidence that future issues will be resolved as quickly as possible.”

Resident Kathy Rylander said mail issues began when the regular carrier became unavailable and the post office turned to fill-in help.

“Not getting the paper every day is so frustrating,” she said of the irregular newspaper delivery. She added residents who went to the post office to retrieve their delayed mail often were told it was out with the carrier and unavailable for pickup.

Residents cited various reasons offered by postal staff for the mail delays, including that they were on a rural route and would receive mail only on Thursdays.

The U.S. Postal Service issued a statement Wednesday, stating, “The Postal Service is committed to providing the best possible service to our customers. All mail delivery services in the area of concern in Minot, ND, are current and on time. USPS would like to apologize for misinformation and any inconvenience this may have caused. When mail service issues occur, we take steps to quickly resolve customer concerns. We gladly work to address any specific issue from the community when brought to our attention and we encourage customers to reach out to their local postal station.”

USPS also has a “contact” link on the bottom of its website homepage that customers can use.

“Every email will be carefully documented and appropriate action taken to strengthen service,” the USPS statement concluded.

Affected southeast Minot residents reported daily mail service resumed on Monday.