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Traffic chaos in Kennington after burst water main floods street

Summary:

Last night’s ‘poonami’ led to homes being evacuated.

Image:

By SWLondoner staff

Anyone running late for work this morning had the chance to use a more unusual excuse than normal – the London poonami.

Commuters took to twitter to complain about the traffic delays after a water main burst in Kennington last night, apparently causing sewage to stream down Clapham Road.

A number of homes were flooded, although whether the water actually contained any excrement is up for debate.

Thames Water were quick to deny the claims, and said that the water was brown as a result of mixing with silt and mud.

Twitter was awash with pictures and videos of people being evacuated from their homes after the deluge seeped into lower ground floor flats.

Madelaine Smith tweeted this photo of her friend being helped out by a firefighter attending the scene.

“Only my lovely friend @Kate Massey could get stranded by a poonami and end up looking so gorgeous,” she said.  

Firefighters, police cars and an ambulance attended the scene near Oval Station, although underground services were not affected.

Photos courtesy of Lewis Whyld via Twitter, with thanks.

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