Furious residents claim they have been left in the dark over the building of a telephone mast in Otley.

They claim they knew nothing about the mobile communications mast until work at the site off Leeds Road started earlier this week.

Now they want work at the Wharfedale Farmers Auction Mart to be halted until it can be proved there will be no harmful side effects. And a public meeting has been called for next Wednesday at 8pm at Otley Civic Centre when it is hoped a representative from One 2 One will be on hand to answer residents' fears.

Councillor Nigel Francis, who lives in nearby Pearsons Buildings and who has a young child, said: "I can either blow it up and end up in jail, I could block the entrance to the auction mart, I could ignore it, or I could move out of Otley. I don't want to break the law, but I just don't know what to do."

Coun Francis said he had been in touch with Dr Gerald Hyland of the Department of Physics at the University of Warwick, an international expert in the potential health hazards of mobile telephones and masts.

Teacher Catherine Hurst, who has a two-week-old baby, Jack Samuel, said she and her husband, Daniel, now wanted to move away from their Albion Street home.

"We are absolutely appalled and very concerned about it. We want to move to a bigger home and were hoping to sell the house. Now we want to put the house on the market straight away," she said.

And John and Margaret Parkin, who also live in Pearsons Buildings, said they were concerned that not enough was known about potential health risks connected to masts.

A spokesman for One 2 One said: "We wouldn't do anything if we didn't think it was safe. We are required to meet the recommended guidelines for emissions."

A Leeds City Council spokesman said an application to put up a 15 metre high mast was submitted to the planning department in August under the 42 day prior approval procedure - giving the Council limited opportunity to have any say in its siting and design.

"The application was considered by the development control panel (West) on September 21. The department have not received any objections since the application was considered at this meeting."

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