Council bosses are being flooded with complaints over a colossal 38 per cent rise in residents' council tax bills.
Town hall switchboards in Eastbourne are being jammed by residents concerned at how they are going to pay.
Average Band D properties in the resort have been hit with a bill of £1,209.49 - the first time it has reached four figures.
The rise is among the UK's highest.
Only some London boroughs, such as Wandsworth, with a 48 per cent hike, are higher.
Council bosses on Lib Dem-run Eastbourne Borough Council blamed a harsh government grant settlement for the rise.
The town's Tory MP Nigel Waterson has also been deluged with complaints.
He said: "Many of those contacting me are elderly and vulnerable people who simply don't know how they are going to find the extra cash.
"A number of people have got on to me because the switchboard at the town hall was flooded with complaints and I'm told extra staff have now been drafted in."
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