Updated: Fire crews confirm reports of ground moving in Harrogate

Firefighters were called to the grass verge on Otley Road yesterday morning after a member of the public said he had seen the ‘ground moving and smoke shooting out 6ft into the air’.

The member of the public also reported that there was a strong smell of sulphur from the ground before members of the fire brigade arrived on the scene shortly after 11am.

Fire crews confirmed that the ‘ground did appear to be moving’ before contacting North Yorkshire Police and cordoning off the area.

Northern Powergrid were then contacted after fire crews established there were electrical manhole covers in the area and believed there had been a shortage in the main supply line.

The electrical fault left 23 members of the public without power for most of the morning and Northern Powergrid confirmed that, if a fault develops in a cable, this could produce a rumbling effect.

A spokesperson for Northern Powergrid said: “23 members of the public were without power from 8.30am - 11am but we then diverted electricity supplies to elsewhere on the network to reduce the impact on customers.

“Engineers could only fix the cable by 9.15pm by digging up the cable and replacing it. Northern Powergrid apologies for the loss of power some people experienced.”