We were one of the 2,000 Brighton households that were affected by the total loss of power the other night due to a local electricity substation fire.

It really makes one aware of how we take electricity for granted and how lost we can be without it. I have to be connected to a continuous positive airways pressure machine (CPAP) at night because of a medical condition and had to stay up until the power came on again at about 2.30am.

During this time we celebrated the existence of mobile phones, that was until one of them ran out of charge! As well as keeping in touch with friends by mobile thankfully we were able to log onto the Argus news site via iPad that kept us up-to-date with what was going on.

Colin Barton, Robin Dene, Brighton