More than 50,000 properties in East Durham and Hartlepool were left without power in the dead of night.
The power cut took place on Friday (September 6) around 3.28am due to a fault on National Grid's electricity transmission network.
Northern Powergrid has confirmed that around 54,000 customers were affected by the blackout - with teams quickly restoring power to over 16,000 customers within just 11 minutes.
All remaining customers were then safely back on by 3.44am.
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A spokesperson for Northern Powergrid said: “At 3.28am on Friday 6 September there was a power cut, affecting around 54,000 customers in the East Durham and Hartlepool area. This was caused by a fault on National Grid’s electricity transmission network.
“We re-energised our section of the network and power was restored to over 16,000 customers within 11 minutes. All remaining customers were safely back on supply within 16 minutes (by 3.44am)
“Our team reacted swiftly and worked in partnership with National Grid to restore supplies.”
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