Traders in Rottingdean are holding a meeting tonight to vent their anger at the closure of the High Street during gas main works.

The 100 shops and businesses say they are losing thousands of pounds as the normally picturesque village is turned into a building site.

On Saturday, workmen blacked out the village for several hours after they hit a power cable. Shops had to close and send staff home.

Contractors working for gas firm Transco are carrying out the work, which is scheduled to last another six weeks. Transco says it is ahead of schedule.

All shops and pubs have reported a dramatic loss of trade and some say it is hardly worth opening.

Peter Ghazal, owner of Denes Motors said: "We are all fed up. Nobody seems to be helping us.

"We need action to speed this work up before we go out of business. Sometimes there are just two men working along the whole street."

The meeting is at The Rottingdean Club in the High Street at 6pm.