UK weather: Flashs floods spark chaos on roads and rails as thunderstorm warning extended

Fourth day in a row of thunderstorm warnings sees London swamped

Floods lashed parts of the UK on Wednesday, sparking travel chaos as roads and train stations were overwhelmed with water.

Torrential downpours in London caused chaos for commuted during the evening rush hour as flash flooding forced the closure of several tube stations and left some roads waterlogged.

Flooding also hit the busy London Victoria Station, forcing some shops and platforms 7 and 8 to close for a period in the afternoon.

As the evening rush hour began, London mayor Sadiq Khan said: “Parts of London and our transport network are currently experiencing disruption due to thunderstorms and flash flooding.”

Southeastern Railway introduced “precautionary speed restrictions” on its Hastings line thropugh Kent and West Sussex and between Tonbridge and Ashford International.

Meanwhile, Gatwick airport warned of flight delays and cancellations as the foul weather forced authorities to bring in air traffic control restrictions.

A man tries to sweep a drain near Kings Cross station (SWNS)

Town hall officials in Hackney warned residents that “severe flooding” meant they should “avoid” Stoke Newington in the east London borough and it was working to clear drains and hand out sandbags.

Heavy downpours also left “large pools of water in several locations” in Islington and Finsbury Park, north London, the council said.

One man was filmed on a road by Kings Cross Station in shin-high water using a brush to sweep debris from a gutter.

The gym in the Houses of Parliament was also flooded out.

A car negotiates a flooded section of road in Stoke Newignton (Getty)

The sudden downpours hit as Thames Water, which supplies 15 million people, confirmed it is putting a hosepipe ban in place next week, saying water levels in its reservoirs were “much lower than usual”.

An amber thunderstorm warning had been in place covering most of the southeast of England, including parts of London, for Wednesday.

A yellow thunderstorm warning was also in place for the east of England, London and the southeast plus the southwest. As much as 30mm to 50mm of rain was expected in just one hour, while a few places were forecast more than 100mm in a few hours.

For Thursday, the Met Office issued a yellow warning for thunderstorms across parts of Kent and Medway. Forecasters said: “Fast flowing or deep floodwater is likely, causing danger to life.”

A worker sweeps floodwater at Bassetlaw Hospital on Tuesday (Bassetlaw Hospital)

Wednesday was the fourth day in a row of thunderstorm warnings in the UK.

Nottinghamshire County Council said that Tuesday’s storms flooded at least 30 homes and business premises in its region and an eight-foot-wide sinkhole was reported to have appeared in a Matalan car park.

Worksop Leisure Centre was put on standby as a rest centre in case properties needed to be evacuated and a tree was reported to have fallen in Carlton Road, according to the council.

Bassetlaw Hospital said it was carrying out “a drying out job” after the building flooded on Tuesday night and led officials to ask people to ensure the emergency department was “used appropriately”.

Stagecoach East Midlands, which serves Hull, Lincolnshire and North Notts, told customers that  all of its services had been operating “to the best of our ability” but flooding had caused disruption across the whole Worksop network.

The Environment Agency’s flood duty manager Neil Davies said: “We urge people not to drive though flood water – it is often deeper than it looks and just 30cm of flowing water is enough to float your car.”