Hampshire supermarkets have run out of ice due to the popularity of the ice bucket challenge which is sweeping the nation

Freezer shelves at stores are standing empty after shoppers rushed to buy ice to take part in the fundraising exercise in aid of a motor neurone disease charity.

Shops in Bursledon and Fareham are turning people away as they struggle to meet the demand while some have been ordering extra shipments in.

Shelves have emptied of ice cubes with shoppers snapping up supplies for the challenge

The campaign has quickly spread across social media thanks to hundreds of celebrities taking part, including David Beckham, Robert Downey Jr and even Saints legend Matthew Le Tissier.

Tesco has donated profits from its ice cube sales to charity, and challenged other supermarkets to do the same after selling more than 36 million individual ice cubes over the last week.

So far the retailer has donated £20,000 to the Motor Neurone Disease Association and nominated competitors Sainsbury's, Asda and Morrisons to follow suit.

A Sainsbury’s spokesman added it’s ice sales had doubled compared to a normal summer.

The ice bucket challenge involves dumping iced water on someone's head before the participant nominates another person to have a go.

More than £2million has been raised so far and the figure is rising daily as more people are nominated.