Burst water main causes flooding in Islington

16 minutes ago

Jess Warrenand

James W Kelly,London

The burst pipe has caused flooding between Caledonian Road and Twyford Street

A burst water main has flooded roads in north London.

The London Fire Brigade (LFB) said the burst 30in (76cm) pipe was causing flooding between Caledonian Road and Twyford Street, to the junction of Thornhill Bridge Wharf and Caledonian Road in Islington.

Six fire engines and around 40 firefighters plus specialist teams were called to the scene at about 14:45 GMT.

A Thames Water spokesperson apologised to the affected residents and said its engineers were on site shortly after 13:45, who "successfully isolated the damaged section of pipe, which has stabilised the network and restored water supply to the wider area".

"We are now carrying out further work to gradually return supply to the remaining customers, and then we will be accessing the damaged pipe to plan the necessary repairs," they said.

The water firm said that some customers in the N1, N7, WC1X and EC1R postcodes may still experience low pressure or intermittent supply while work was under way.

News image — Fire crews were called to the scene at about 14:45 GMT

London Fire Brigade A view of flood water behind a cordon. There is a fire engine parked on the opposite side of the water. — Fire crews were called to the scene at about 14:45 GMT

Drivers are being urged to avoid the area, and a respite centre for affected residents has been set up at Islington Tennis Centre.

Una O'Halloran, leader of Islington Council, said her "heart goes out" to those who live and work in the area.

O'Halloran said: "Local people simply shouldn't have to face this level of disruption - we're doing all we can to resolve this, but we're calling on Thames Water to manage the situation, and help get our residents and businesses back into their properties as quickly as possible."

She said council staff were supporting emergency services.

A Thames Water tanker lorry parked on a residential street at night, with traffic queuing behind it and a cyclist riding past. Streetlights illuminate nearby houses and a concrete wall on the right. — Thames Water said its crews were at the scene soon after the flooding began

LFB said two of its specialist fire and rescue units, with inflatable boats, pumping equipment and flood kits, were responding to the flooding.

Thames Water's spokesperson added: "Customer representatives and loss adjusters are on their way to the site and will assist customers who have been affected by flooding.

"Once again, we apologise to all of those who have been affected by this burst."

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