THOUSANDS of homes have lost electricity after a power cut surged through Central Reading and Whitley this afternoon.

Scottish and Southern Energy (SSE) confirmed homes and businesses in RG1 and RG2 were hit by the power cut and engineers are trying to tackle the issue.

It is likely that power will be out until around 6pm tonight (Sunday).

A London Road resident lost power in his home at around 4pm.

He said: "I was making a cup of tea and all of a sudden all the power went out.

"Nothing in the flat is working at the moment.

"It's deeply frustrating so I hope they get the power back up sooner rather than later."

SSE apologised for the problem on social media.