A huge battery storage facility the size of two football pitches being built on protected green land will 'destroy life as we know it', furious villagers have warned.
People living in picturesque Chilworth, near Southampton, Hampshire, fear it will be a 'disaster' and create a fire risk and potentially toxic fumes close to a nearby nursery and school.
But despite locals concerns about lithium batteries' notorious tendency to go up in flames, the council gave the plans the green light during a fiery planning meeting invoking the wrath of one resident who stormed out.
Just yards from St Denys church, which has bells that date back to 1200, plans for the 'monstrosity' include a substation, transformer, site accesses, internal access tracks, security measures, access gates, other ancillary infrastructure and landscaping.