A supermarket in Oldham that was forced to close after a power outage has seen thousands of pounds of food saved and donated to local causes.

The Co-operative supermarket, situated on Rochdale Road in Royton, has suffered a power outage for more than 24 hours.

The shop closed up on Saturday, July 8, at 8pm and was unable to reopen again as of Monday at 8am due to the loss of power.

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The problem is believed to have been caused by a cable fault which has also affected a number of other smaller businesses in the area.

The Co-op said North West Electricity has been on the scene since Sunday where the team discovered a 'smoking' cable somewhere near the car park.

However, the power cut has threatened most of the stock in the supermarket - and staff have been working hard to save as much as possible and donate it to struggling people in the community.

Store manager Darren Ramsden, said: "We are trying to make the best from a bad situation.

"The power cut resulted in a total loss of chilled and frozen food.

"We have managed to donate a significant amount of food waste to Oldham Foodbank and our food waste partner, Think! Food 2 Plate, to at least help support the community and the homeless."

A photograph of the scene shows hundreds of pounds worth of stock was donated with 800 pounds worth going to Oldham Foodbank and £2,000 of none high-risk items to Think! Food 2 Plate.

Darren also said power has thankfully been restored as of 4pm this afternoon, though the shop still isn't trading while staff ensure the shop floor is safe.

He said they hope to open from 6pm this evening but also warned availability of some items may be limited considering the amount of food that had to be discarded.

"We are doing our best to support the community in a poor situation.

"Apologies for the trouble caused by this, we will get open as soon as we are able to do so safely", he added.

It isn't the first time the Co-op team have sprung into action to support their community either.

Darren said community is a "real important part of what we do".

He explained how his team helped with Dr Kershaw's Rose to Remember appeal, in total raising a whopping £12,500 through the team's fundraising efforts for the benefit of the hospice.

If you have a story, I cover all things Oldham from food reviews and local business news to music and events, pubs, education, crime, property, health, community concerns and much more. Please email me at Olivia.bridge@newsquest.co.uk or send me a message on Twitter @Livbridge with your news.