HUNDREDS of residents have been left without phone lines after arsonists struck in Astley Bridge.

They targeted a junction box on Seymour Road and it could be several days before all BT customers are reconnected.

The problem has left 400 residents and businesses on the street without phone lines or internet connection.

The lines went down at around 8pm on Tuesday night after the box was destroyed by the fire.

BT has pledged to work round the clock to get customers reconnected as soon as possible, but say it could take a few days because the damage was extensive.

Firefighters believe that the box was attacked deliberately and the police are investigating the incident.

Cleaning and detergents manufacturer, Acdo Co, is one of the businesses affected.

IT manager David Pilling said: "This is causing us a lot of problems. We rely on communication and everything is down.

"We have diverted phone lines to mobiles, but we cannot send or receive faxes and are unable to get on the internet to get emails.

"We have another site at Blackburn which we work closely with and the problem here is having a knock-on effect with them.

"We are trying to work round it as best we can and just hope the problem is sorted out quickly."

Paul Henderson, a sales representative for an orthopaedic company, works from his Seymour Road home.

He said: "I was supposed to be emailing a report to my boss today and was trying to get the internet to work for two hours before I found out what has happened."

A spokesman for BT said: "Up to 400 customers will be affected by this fire and we are working around the clock to restore the service.

"People affected will be brought back gradually. We have to reconnect the copper wires one at a time, as there has been a massive melt down inside the cabinet.

"We hope to restore the service for everybody by the end of the week."