EIGHTY potential killers have been sentenced to life in the dog house.

Council officials are celebrating after their recent three-day long blitz on faulty electric blankets. From 205 tested, 80 were declared totally unfit for use while 70 passed with flying colours.

The de-activated faulty blankets have now been donated to Bleakholt Animal Sanctuary in Edenfield to provide stray animals with some extra bedding for the winter.

Nearly two thirds of the electric blankets tested by Trading Standards staff during their campaign either had to have minor repairs carried out before being declared fully fit for use or were labelled as "unsafe" and owners were warned not to use them again.

The main reason for failure was that the blankets were more than 15 years old and had no over-heat protection. This meant that there was no built in mechanism to switch them off if they became too hot.

Bury Council's public protection committee spokesperson, Councillor Mike Connolly, said: "This has been a very successful campaign, the results of which have highlighted the dangers of using old or unsafe electric blankets.

"We hope to be able to provide the service again in future years but, in the meantime, anyone with any doubt as to the safety of their blanket should have it checked by a qualified electrician before using it.

"That little bit of extra attention could prove a life saver."

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.