HUNDREDS of homes in an Essex town have lost power after a faulty cable caused a power cut this evening.

The outage impacts properties in the CM3 5 postcode area, which includes South Woodham Ferrers.

The incident, which affects 633 properties, was reported to UK Power Networks just after 7pm.

It was caused by a fault with an underground electricity cable.

It is currently estimated power will return to the area between 8.30pm and 9.30pm today.

A statement on the UK Power Networks website advises: "There is currently a power cut in this area.

"Our engineers are working hard to fix it as quickly as possible. We are sorry for any trouble this may have caused you.

"An underground electricity cable has faulted on our high voltage network, causing an area wide power cut."