Unhappy residents in Camden Town are facing a second night in the cold after a power cut wiped out their electricity and heating supply. Torches and blankets were handed out to residents on the Clarence Way estate after a power cut on Tuesday morning.

Unhappy residents in Camden Town are facing a second night in the cold after a power cut wiped out their electricity and heating supply.

Torches and blankets were handed out to residents on the Clarence Way estate after a power cut on Tuesday morning.

Camden Council has also promised to refund the cost of take-away meals after residents were unable to cook dinner in their own flats.

But residents' spokeswoman Silla Carron has slammed the Town Hall for not doing enough.

She said: "We have old people here who are really frail and they just don't want to leave their homes. No one from Camden has been here to ask us if we are alright. Where is the department that deals with these emergencies?"

At 7.45am on Tuesday a resident called the repairs team at the council after hearing an explosion in the electricity box outside his flat. He claims he was told to call back in half an hour because the staff were about to change shifts.

Later on in the morning there was another explosion outside Ms Carron's flat and the Fire brigade ordered power to be shut down leaving 200 to 250 residents facing a freezing night without heating.

Camden Town councillor Pat Callaghan was at the scene to offer support.

She said: "It was absolute chaos. Most of the residents affected spent the night holed up in a cold flat because a lot of the elderly didn't want to move out. What concerned me was that the emergency planning team was nowhere to be seen.

"The wardens and the district housing office were brilliant. One of them even went out and bought a load of torches with his own money but most people were left sitting in the dark

"One lady told me she went to bed at 7pm and just tried to keep warm all night."

A spokeswoman for Camden Council said: "We are working hard with EDF to restore the electricity to properties affected by the power outage on the Clarence Way estate. Engineers are on site working to identify the problem and return power to the affected properties as soon as possible.

"The priority of the council is the welfare of residents. All of those affected been visited and updated on the situation and vulnerable residents have been identified. Alternative accommodation has been offered to residents if wanted.