'Drug factory discovered' in Doncaster street blitzed by dozens of power cuts

According to residents, the den was found in Spansyke Street earlier this week.

The discovery came after the Free Press highlighted how residents in the Hexthorpe road had been plunged into darkness on a number of occasions in recent weeks after power surges kept tripping out supplies.

Power firm Northern Powergrid, which has been monitoring the situation, refused to confirm the discovery but said it was working with South Yorkshire Police to target illegal use of power supplies in the area.

A spokesman said: "We are unable to make any comments regarding individual incidents however we are continuing to work closely with South Yorkshire Police.

"We would encourage anyone with information to contact the police on 101 or our partners Crimestoppers 100% anonymously on freephone 0800 555 111 or fill in the simple and secure anonymous online form at crimestoppers-uk.org.”

At the weekend, Doncaster mum Zoe Fretwell, 25, who lives in Spansyke Street revealed how she and four-year-old daughter Autumn had been suffering power cuts on an almost daily basis for up to hours, for a number of weeks.

Zoe’s angry dad, John, a paramedic with Yorkshire Ambulance Service, said the constant cuts were putting the life of his daughter and grand-daughter in danger.

He said: "They are both at the stage where they dread a power cut now, Autumn gets quite scared and cries and gets panicky when the house goes dark.

"It’s dangerous too. What if she is upstairs, gets scared or falls downstairs in the dark. Or worse still, what if the electricity problems cause a fire?

"The whole house is electric so they rely on it for heating, cooking, everything.”

"It’s disgusting. It’s dictating how people live their lives and it’s not fair. There are problem many others in the same boat who are accepting this as the norm and suffering in silence but they shouldn't have to. It's horrible.”

He said that the cuts sometimes lasted up to six hours or more, often leaving the pair cold and hungry.