Energy company UK Power Networks has apologised to thousands of its customers in the Great Yarmouth and Lowestoft areas whose homes and businesses were plunged into darkness during a power cut last night.

The major power cut happened at about 8.55pm during thunder storms and saw many homes and businesses in a large area between Yarmouth and Lowestoft lose their electricity for more than an hour.

This morning Yarmouth library was closed due to the power failure and Waveney District Council's telephone network was also badly affected.

UK Power Networks said: 'Our engineers restored electricity supplies to several thousand customers between Yarmouth and Lowestoft after a power interruption at about 8.55pm on Wednesday night as a storm was moving through the area.

'The first customers had power again within 20 minutes with all supplies back on, in stages, by 10.18pm.

'We apologise to customers for the inconvenience this caused and our engineers worked to reconnect all electricity supplies as soon as possible.'

During the storm the coastguard station at Yarmouth's Havenbridge House was struck by lightning forcing it to rely on a back-up, battery operated power supply until normal supplies could be restored.