A loud bang caused a rude awakening for residents after a substation reportedly exploded.

Residents in Sandpiper Road, Lordswood, heard the sudden explosion on Sunday morning and were left with no power.

Plunged into darkness, many were unsure what the cause of the outage was until SSEN workers appeared.

Power was restored later on Sunday morning.

One woman, who lives nearby, said her daughter rushed into her room crying after hearing the bang.

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The woman, who wished to remain unnamed, said: “We knew that something had exploded.

“My husband went for a walk to see what had happened and noticed the workmen in the substation on Sandpiper Road which is close to us.

“They were luckily both ok, but one of them said his ears were hurt because of the bang.

“They were working in the station to get the power back up and running and the explosion happened while they were there.

“The fence and the shed at the back of the station was totally black and it took the bottom of the shed off its hinges.

“The workmen were so lucky considering what had happened but also praise to them for carrying on so we could all have our power back.

“It really made the area concerned about what had happened and thank goodness no one was hurt.”

SSEN has been approached for comment.