Tower Bridge and parts of the Tube 'flooded' as rain deluge hits London

14 September 2021, 13:14

Torrential rain causes flooding at Tower Bridge

Tower Bridge and parts of the London Underground have flooded as heavy downpours continue to batter the capital.

Footage has shown cars ploughing through floodwater on the famous bridge in central London, with a blanket of clouds filling the sky.

Angry commuters shared their frustration online, suggesting the government "start investing in flood prevention infrastructure" as flash flooding becomes more frequent.

It comes after the Met Office released a yellow weather warning for rain across most of England on Tuesday.

Parts of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland will also experience wet weather throughout the day, but no warnings have been issued for these nations.

Read more: UK weather: Yellow warning issued as rain set to batter most of England

The torrential rain saw some major roads and Tube stations subject to flash flooding as well, in the country's latest sweep of extreme weather.

Parts of the District Line and North Circular were said to have been submerged in water, with Mile End forced to temporarily close earlier in the morning.

The station has since reopened, but drivers have been warned that there could be delays on the roads as the challenging conditions continue to disrupt routes.

The bad weather will not stay for much longer though, with the heavy downpours set to move away from London and towards the north throughout the day.

Met Office meteorologist Annie Shuttleworth said that parts of the Midlands and north-east could see 40mm of rain.

"We have seen the main body of rain move further north throughout the morning, and the rain will persist for the longest in north-eastern parts of England," Ms Shuttleworth said.

She added that the rain is set to ease in the south on Tuesday afternoon, with a "low risk" of thunderstorms to follow.

On Wednesday, there will be drier weather across the UK, which is set to stay fairly settled with patchy sunshine predicted throughout the coming days.

Climate scientists have said there is little doubt that climate change is responsible for the increase in extreme events around the world.

It comes ahead of Cop26 - the global climate summit, set to take place in Glasgow in November.

Leaders will be under pressure to up their action on curbing rising temperatures after stark warnings from scientists.

When flooding last swept the capital, Mayor Sadiq Khan said it was proof "the dangers of climate change are now moving closer to home".