Flood chaos hits Twickenham (From Richmond and Twickenham Times)

Flood chaos hits Twickenham

3:32pm Friday 20th July 2007 in

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Torrential rain has caused chaos in Twickenham town centre.

Several shops on King Street, including KFC, Orange, Iceland, Marks and Spencer's Simply Food and Reels Amusement Arcade, were forced to shut their doors as the heavens opened this morning (Friday July 20).

Martin Guyett, service manager at Reels Amusement Arcade, said: "The water was about midway up my calves.

"The water was just coming in the door and we had to close them to try and stop it.

"But every time a bus went past a tidal wave would come in through the door.

"We had to switch all the machines off so they didn't break.

"It was like a dip in the middle of King Street here; water was running from both ends of the town.

"We have put sandbags out for tonight - we are expecting more rain."

A worker in a shop currently being refurbished by Mezone London, who wished to remain anonymous, said the parquet flooring would have to be replaced at a cost of several thousand pounds.

Ceiling panels in the Cross Deep shop had also collapsed.

He said: "The water was coming up through the floor like a spring.

"It was about 10cm deep."

Kingston Bridge was also closed, causing chaos on roads in and out of the borough.

See pictures of the floods across the borough and south-west London here