THREE hundred homes near the region's biggest shopping centre were left without power after vandals set an electricity sub station alight.

Properties around Gates-head's MetroCentre were plunged into darkness by an arson attack on Tuesday.

Five youths were seen running from the blazing sub station, near Dunston Industrial Estate, in Gateshead, shortly before 9pm.

The rear wall of the steel and fibreglass station collapsed and there was an explosion when a high voltage cable and switch gear were damaged.

Homes and businesses in the area were without power until shortly after midnight yesterday, when engineers transferred supplies to a nearby sub station as a temporary measure.

The MetroCentre, which was open until 10pm and packed with Christmas shoppers, suffered a dip in power but was otherwise unaffected.

It is the second serious fire in the area in less than a week.

Vandals caused road and rail chaos last week by placing a gas cylinder on a rubbish fire, leading police to set up a 300-metre exclusion zone around the blaze.

Anyone with information on the latest fire is asked to call police on 0191-454 7555.