A KAMIKAZE squirrel left more than 4,000 Bewdley homes without power on Saturday morning.

The roaming rodent wandered into a sub-station and was killed instantly by an 11,000-volt shock, plunging 4,400 properties into a state of powerlessness.

A failsafe device meant the electricity was cut off at 8.50am and it took engineers more than two hours to get the majority of homes back on the grid.

Normal service was resumed to all homes by midday and power has since been restored to the Spencer Avenue sub-station, off Kidderminster Road in Wribbenhall.

A spokeswoman for Aquila, which manages the building, apologised for the inconvenience caused.