EAST Lancashire could be facing a summer shortage -- but not of water.

The area's largest ice cream supplier, Rippleheads Ices, Eanam, Blackburn, has been hit by a disaster and has barely any stock left to sell.

Rippleheads has two enormous cold rooms where stocks are usually held but five weeks ago, one freezer broke down and a week ago, the second also failed.

Now the firm, which could normally supply about 25,000 ice creams or lollies in a summer week, is nearing the end of its stock.

Delivery vans are being used to store a small amount temporarily and the firm says £10,000 of stock has had to be thrown away.

Bosses now fear an ice cream shortage could hit the area.

Blackburn company Acme Refrigeration, which supplies parts to Rippleheads, says it has found a part to repair one of the freezers but it will take a few days to fit and get operational.

Catherine Elliot, owner of Rippleheads, said: "At the moment we are just waiting for the parts.

"We can't even take any delivery drivers on because we cannot send any vans out. We are using what we've got to store what we can.

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Rippleheads usually acts like a cash and carry, with small outlets including newsagents, corner shops and schools, turning up to pick up ice cream.

The company also delivers but does not make ice cream. Instead it buys direct from big manufacturers including Walls and Nestle.

The firm estimates on a good day, 50 outlets will turn up to buy and a freezer full of stock, worth between £20,000 and £30,000, can often be used up in a week.

But now the few vans are holding stock worth a few thousand pounds at most.

It fears shops it normally sells to, in Blackburn, Darwen, Clitheroe, Accrington, Great Harwood and Oswaldtwistle, will begin to run low.

Yesterday Mrs Elliot, and her father Fred, who is helping to man the phones during the crisis, were waiting for the vital replacement parts -- compressors which power the freezer -- to arrive.

Ian Northcott, general manager of Acme, said a part to fix one of the freezers had been found. He said the part took time to find because of the non-standard equipment used.

Mr Elliot, who owned the firm before his daughter, said: "If we get the parts, we can carry on, but we can't sell ice creams if we can't stock it.

"The vans that should be out on the streets are now in the works cooling the stock.

"Every spare van we have got is full to capacity and that also stops us employing people."