Floods hit Bournemouth

Torrential rain drenches residents and holidaymakers at south coast resort of Bournemouth causing floods Torrential rain has drenched residents and holidaymakers in the south coast resort of Bournemouth, causing flash floods and traffic chaos. Dorset police are reporting floodwater up the the level of car bonnets in some areas, with manhole covers lifting and, in one case a “fountain” of water gushing upwards as a road split under the pressure. Bournemouth’s Central Gardens and Boscombe Gardens were both under water following heavy storms accompanied by thunder and lightning. Parts of Poole and Christchurch were also affected. The storms hit on the first day of the Bournemouth Air Festival, with emergency calls starting to come in between 10.30am and 11am on Thursday. Dorset police said the flooding was predominantly in the central Bournemouth area. Roads had to be closed and several vehicles broke down. One of the worst affected roads was the A338 Wessex Way, which was temporarily closed with flood water reported between 2ft and 3ft. “The rainwater was very deep, apparently, almost reaching the bonnets of some of the vehicles along the road”, said the spokesman. It has since reopened. A woman caller told police a slip road was “splitting” and that “water was coming out of the road like a fountain”. The fire brigade were in attendance. By 11.30am, the rain had stopped, and floodwater was beginning to subside. In Westbourne, the fire brigade were called to bail out two basements. Flooding Weather Caroline Davies guardian.co.uk

Posted by on August 18, 2011. Filed under News, Politics, World News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.