VILLAGERS were left furious when their power supply was wiped out by a tractor carrying bales of straw.

The vehicle was travelling through The Street in the village of Pebmarsh on Sunday evening when it crashed against a hedge, taking down a power cable, leaving some homes without power.

The heavy bales were sprawled out down the street as residents figured out a way to move them.

But residents claim the driver of the lorry and Michael Sharp found the incident “amusing” and were “unsympathetic” towards villagers who had lost power.

Louise Bradley-Flack said: “The lorry crashed against a large hedge and power cable, resulting in a power tremor throughout several properties and a full power outage on others.

“The driver was unshaken and joking as he walked back down the road to check the damage as residents rushed out after hearing a horrendous bang and lights flashed in many homes on both sides of the road.”

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Residents also claim the bales were not properly secured and were strapped in with worn straps which should “never” have been used.

Louise added: “After checking the fallen bales, the driver called his boss, councillor Sharp to come and assist, but to residents surprise councillor Sharp was unsympathetic to the situation.

“Other residents had witnessed speeding through the sleepy village the night before by the farmers trying to get the load in before the weather changed.

“Councillor Sharp claimed the straps were brand new, but they clearly showed immense wear and tear which should never have been used to secure such a dangerous load.

“Other neighbours witness the event and said clouds of smoke went up into the air and it was an accident waiting to happen.”

UK power networks were quickly on the scene after the crash to restore power, but some remained out for a number of hours.

Mr Sharp said he went down to help clear the mess and make sure everyone was safe, but was met by residents who “laid into him”,

Speaking about the claims he found the incident amusing, Mr Sharp said his main priority was clearing the road and making sure everyone was safe.

He said: “I went down there to clear it and they started abusing me as well and our main concern was to get the road clear and safe for everyone.

“It was an accident really, everything was strapped up accordingly as it should have been.

“Thankfully no one got hurt and the road was cleared and made safe.

“When I got there the driver was nearly in tears and everyone deals with things differently.

“Residents laid into me, but we just wanted to get the road clear as soon as possible, that was our main concern, so I did find it amusing.

“It was just one of those unfortunate things that happens.

Mr Sharp said he remained at the scene until UK Power Networks arrived to make sure no one went near the live wires.