Half a month’s rain falls in a few hours, flooding roads, homes and stations and leading to derailment near Watford

This article is more than 4 years old

This article is more than 4 years old

A landslide resulting from torrential rain has caused a train to derail injuring two people, after half a month’s rain fell in a few hours and caused travel chaos across the UK.

The heatwave that the UK had experienced for much of the week ended spectacularly on Friday morning, with the east, south and south-east of England worst affected. They all had amber weather warnings in place, the second-highest alert level, according to the Met Office.

Thousands of homes were left without electricity, while train services were delayed, motorways closed and buildings flooded.

Met Office (@metoffice) #Thunderstorms are currently moving across SE Britain bringing the risk of flash flooding and traffic disruption pic.twitter.com/LYXDySldDk

A southbound train derailed after hitting a landslide near Watford Junction at about 7am. A few moments later, a northbound train delivered a “glancing blow” to the derailed train, Network Rail said.

The train operator London Midland initially said no one had been hurt as a result of the derailment but the East of England ambulance service said it had subsequently treated two people. One man was treated for a neck injury, while a woman believed to be in her 40s was treated for chest pains. Neither injury is thought to be serious of life-threatening.

Network Rail (@networkrail) #WatfordJunction At 7am this morning, a train hit a landslip, caused by torrential rain, resulting in a (cont) https://t.co/fBs7e5AO6X

British Transport police said officers were called to reports of a landslide at the Hunton Bridge Tunnel near Abbots Langley. They were working with fire and ambulance services at the scene.

Lines in and out of Euston station were briefly closed, causing delays as trains were cancelled and rerouted.

London Midland (@LondonMidland) Due to a derailment this morning, there will be delays and cancellations. Ticket acceptance in place on other train operating companies

Sarah Lowther, a reporter who was on the derailed service, said two trains were “kissing each other” in a tunnel. She spoke of a “Dunkirk spirit” on board as passengers helped each another, but said she was worried about the driver, who appeared to be suffering from a bad back after the crash.

Speaking to Share radio, she said: “The trees were taken down from the side of the rail line last year. Trees have roots, roots hold the mud ... The mud had nothing to cling on to. It was the first time I’ve actually flown on a train; when we came off the tracks, I assumed the brace position. Everyone is looking after each other with water and sugar, but we’re worried about our driver.”

Emergency services were trying to help a pregnant woman get off the train, she added.

Martin Frobisher, the route managing director for Network Rail, said: “Our priority is to fully reopen the railway as soon as it is safe to do so. A full investigation into what happened will take place.”

Holidaymakers missed flights as rail services to Stansted airport were disrupted by branches coming into contact with overhead line equipment.

Virgin Trains said replacement bus services had been organised at Milton Keynes Central and Hemel Hempstead stations.

About 1,200 homes across Basingstoke, Newbury, Reading and Bournemouth were left without power as a result of lightning, though the “vast majority” were expected to be connected again by Friday night, the energy provider SSE said.

Lighting also struck a row of six garages in Knaphill at about 9.30am, starting a fire, Surrey fire and rescue service said. There were also delays of almost three hours on the M4 and M40 due to flooding, according to Highways England.

Pictures on social media showed severely waterlogged rail stations in Oxfordshire and Berkshire, including Didcot Parkway and Newbury. Water could be seen rising up stairwells and partially submerging ticket barriers at Didcot Parkway.

There were reports that sewage was flooding into the station. The Didcot Parkway to Oxford line was closed for two weeks in August for flood prevention work.

Jackie Storer (@JackieStorer) Sewage is now flooding #Didcot Station. Only platform 1 open. Will have to be deep cleaned b4 reopening. #signalling problems 2 add 2 woes

South West Trains said several incidents were disrupting the network as a result of the bad weather. “A lightning strike has caused substantial damage to certain elements of our signalling equipment on the line which runs between Ascot and Guildford via Aldershot,” a spokesman said.

“Train services running through these stations may be delayed or revised. Disruption is expected until the end of the day.”

Flooding also damaged equipment connected to a level crossing between Dorchester and Bournemouth, resulting in it having to be manually controlled.



Have you been affected by flooding in the UK? Read more

Infrastructure at Woking was damaged, with disruption and delays expected until the end of the day.



A narrow corridor west of London is expected to be hit by “exceptionally heavy, thundery rain” accompanied by hail on Friday, the Met Office said.



In north London, Turnpike Lane and Manor House tube stations on the Piccadilly line were closed early on Friday, but reopened at about 6.20am, Transport for London said.

The Met Office meteorologist Martin Combe said 32.8mm (1.3in) of rain had fallen in three hours in Farnborough, Hampshire, nearly half the 70mm average for the whole of September.

“The showers and thunderstorms are going to carry on for quite some time, moving slowly north and eastwards, remaining around London through the morning and all afternoon in East Anglia,” he said.

The weather front is due to send temperatures tumbling ahead of the weekend, days after parts of the country baked in 34C (93F) heat.

There were reports of roads and properties being inundated with showers across Surrey, Hampshire, Hertfordshire and Greater London, as a band of torrential rain moved in from the Channel overnight.

Highways England (@HighwaysSEAST) #M4 now closed W/B at J8 #Maidenhead with divert over jcn via exit and entry slips to clear flooding under bridge. pic.twitter.com/QDJWzHwKhM

Surrey fire and rescue service said it had been called to reports of a house struck by lightning near Woking, while crews worked to pump water out of flooded premises across the county.

In Oxfordshire, firefighters were called to Cholsey, East Hagbourne, Didcot, South Stoke, Wallingford and Goring as a result of flooding.

Oxfordshire County (@OxfordshireCC) It's been a long night for our Oxfordshire firefighters who have dealt with a spate of flooding related calls since 4am.

Fire chiefs advised motorists to avoid driving through flooded roads, as pictures emerged of Maidenhead High Street submerged.

A Thames Valley police spokesman said: “Roads are severely disrupted, including the M4 at the A34 junction with Newbury, the M40 throughout the Thames Valley, and in particular the Watlington and Stokenchurch area.”

There were reports that families had been trapped in their houses in one flooded street in Oxfordshire, while fire crews were called to Wallingford Community hospital, where parts of the buildings had flooded.

Away from the storms, Friday will be a relatively cool and fresh day for most of the country, with some sunshine. The thundery weather will clear from central areas and the west of England can expect dry weather with sunny periods, according to the Met Office. London is expected to see a high of 21C, Cardiff 18C and Manchester, Glasgow and Belfast 17C.