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Travel disruption and floods in South East after thunderstorms | |
(35 minutes later) | |
Thunderstorms have caused flooding in London and south-east England, with more than 300 emergency calls being made to the fire service overnight. | Thunderstorms have caused flooding in London and south-east England, with more than 300 emergency calls being made to the fire service overnight. |
London Fire Brigade took a day's worth of calls in 90 minutes, with its crews attending flooded premises and roads, and properties hit by lightning. | London Fire Brigade took a day's worth of calls in 90 minutes, with its crews attending flooded premises and roads, and properties hit by lightning. |
A Met Office amber "be prepared" warning has been issued, and there were reports of 40mm of rain in some areas. | A Met Office amber "be prepared" warning has been issued, and there were reports of 40mm of rain in some areas. |
The Environment Agency has four flood warnings in place. | The Environment Agency has four flood warnings in place. |
Rivers in Bromley and Sidcup in south-east London, and Basildon, Essex, are affected, and there are 24 flood alerts. | |
Meanwhile, Gatwick Express, Abellio Greater Anglia, South West Trains and Southern have warned of major delays on some rail routes. | |
In London, flooding has led to the suspension of services between Parsons Green and Wimbledon on the District on the Tube, and between Liverpool Street and Manor Park on the overground service. | |
A fire service spokesman said: "Crews are being mobilised to incidents as quickly as possible but the brigade is appealing to people to only call 999 in an emergency - where there is a risk to life or property." | |
On Twitter, Transport for London posted incidents of localised flooding on roads, including the Blackwall Tunnel in the east of London, which was temporarily closed. | On Twitter, Transport for London posted incidents of localised flooding on roads, including the Blackwall Tunnel in the east of London, which was temporarily closed. |
BBC Weather said there had been more 1,000 lightning strikes across the UK overnight, although the thunderstorms are easing. | BBC Weather said there had been more 1,000 lightning strikes across the UK overnight, although the thunderstorms are easing. |
The Met Office said the rain was brought on by increasingly warm and humid air arriving from France. | |
Its amber warning for London and parts of Kent, Sussex and Surrey was in effect until 06:00 BST. A yellow "be aware" warning covering a wider area of South East England is in place until 18:00 BST. | |
Forecasters are warning of the potential of a "second wave" of downpours later on Thursday. | Forecasters are warning of the potential of a "second wave" of downpours later on Thursday. |