Customers are demanding assurances about electricity supplies after five separate power failures during the past ten days.

Residents of Peacehaven say they are fed up with being plunged into darkness or waking up without power.

Some homes in the town centre have had five disruptions since December 28.

They are buying candles because they have lost faith in the supply from Seeboard.

John Hodgson, of Capel Avenue, Peacehaven, said: "Our family home has had five cuts in the past ten days, compared with virtually zero in the past 25 years.

"Why is this happening? I have not been able to get a satisfactory reply from Seeboard."

Briony Robins, 24, of Piddinghoe Avenue, who was among the 2,000 customers affected by the first cut on December 28, said: "It was very worrying to wake up and find yourself with no heating or electricity. We all want assurances it will not happen again."

A spokeswoman for Seeboard said there had been problems with a high-voltage cable on December 28.

She added: "A second high-voltage fault interrupted supplies on the afternoon of January 7.

"A low-voltage underground cable fault interrupted supplies to customers in Peacehaven on January 8.

"We apologise for any inconvenience these incidents have caused and trust the supplies have now been restored to their previous good level of reliability."