About 150 people, including carol singers, a choir and Father Christmas, had gathered near the Co-Op in Fronk’s Road on Thursday for the big switch on.
As residents counted down in anticipation of illuminations filling the sky, the main lights at Fronk’s Road Co-op failed. Organisers rushed into the shop to find the switch, but couldn’t locate it.
The remaining lights were eventually twinkling the next night after the switch was found outside the building down an alley. The lights are provided by Harwich's Community Representatives Party.