AN OVERFLOWING dog dirt bin caused such a stink that residents feared they were living near a major gas leak.

Residents in Bridgefield Street, Hapton, even called out gas operators Transco to deal with what they thought was a potentially deadly incident. But the engineers told them that the real source of the stench was methane gas from an overflowing dog dirt bin.

Hapton parish councillor Pat Jones, whose house is directly opposite the bin, today slammed Burnley Council for failing to live up to its high-profile Operation Red Card campaign which announced a crackdown on dog

fouling. Under the new initiative the council names and shames anyone caught allowing their dogs to foul in public.

Pat, who lives with husband Allan, said she has contacted the borough council several times about the problem, which appeared to get worse with the recent hot weather.

Residents were first aware of the stench on Thursday, and Transco told them not to switch lights on or even move their car while an engineer attended the scene to investigate the smell.

She said: "People are doing their best to keep the village free of dog mess but are being let down by the council."

A Transco engineer carried out tests outside and inside the Jones' home on Thursday but found no leak and said the source was methane escaping from the bin.

On Friday another engineer visited and came to the same conclusion.

Coun Jones said the engineer could have been needed at an emergency elsewhere.

She added: "Some of this dog poo is weeks old and you have to smell it to believe it.

"We were really scared but Transco accepted we called them out with the best of intentions."

John O'Grady, spokesman for Transco, confirmed engineers did attend the scene on Thursday and Friday believing the cause of the smell to be the bin. He said: "This is the most bizarre call I have dealt with in 19 years with the company.

"We would much rather people call us if they smell gas and it turn out to be a false alarm then leave it and make the situation worse.

"It is much better to be safe then sorry."

Peter Gibson, spokesman for the Keep Britain Tidy Campaign said: "We are trying to encourage people to use dog bins as much as possible but this would be difficult if they are not emptied properly."

A spokeswoman for Burnley Council confirmed a complaint had been received on Friday.

She added: "In line with our procedures the bin will be emptied by the end of the next working day."