A lack of 4G connection and mobile phone signal is causing plenty of frustration for Hitchin residents, but what is causing the issues?

Connection issues have plagued the town for a number of weeks since a large scale power cut on November 4, with a number of service providers effected.

According to a message sent of customers by O2, "power issues" with a nearby phone mast are causing the problem.

"Sorry, a phone mast close to you isn't working," the message reads.

"Looks like a nearby phone mast is having power issues. We're working with the regional energy supplier to make sure it's safe and to get it fixed quickly.

"In the meantime, you might have some trouble with your calls, texts and data. We'll update you by Friday, December 6."

Vodafone customers have also been impacted, with an update on the providers website reading: "There’s a problem with our mobile network in this area at the moment that may be causing issues with your service.

"We’re sorry if you’re experiencing any disruption, we know how frustrating this can be. Unfortunately, it’s taking us a little longer than we expected to fix this issue.

"Rest assured, we’ll get things up and running again as soon as we can, and we’ll update this page once we have an update.

"Thanks for your patience. As soon as we have any further updates, we’ll let you know here."

Three are also reporting issues, saying: "We're working on the network in this area at the moment. We're sorry for any disruption this may be causing.

"We hope to be finished working on these improvements as soon as possible. We'll add any further updates here."

Customers with EE, Voxi and Tesco Mobile are also reporting connectivity problems.