A power surge blew up electrical appliances in an East Yorkshire village and left parts of it without electricity.

Dozens of Shiptonthorpe residents were affected by the incident, which knocked out central heating, ruined televisions and video recorders, and extinguished street lighting.

Some have criticised Yorkshire Electricity for failing to act promptly.

Dave White, of York Road, was sitting in his living room when his television set blew up.

"I was watching TV and trying to figure out what was wrong with the picture, and the next thing I know a big white flash came out of the back of it," he said.

The surge also knocked out two video recorders, a microwave and a mobile phone charger.

Roger Mitchell, landlord of the Ship Inn, said he lost a whole day's trade as a result of the power surge.

"I had to turn away business and I had people sitting in the pub waiting to be fed," he said.

Mr Mitchell said he had had problems with irregular power supplies for a number of months.

"The lights have been flickering so much that it's like a disco in here sometimes," he said.

Parish councillor David Larder said one elderly couple had been left without the means of cooking and others were without heat.

"I understand that one person's washing machine started to walk across the floor as the power surged through it," he said.

Yorkshire Electricity spokesman Paul Keenan said the loss of power was caused by a power overload. He said loss adjusters had taken affected appliances away for repair.