A man was rescued from a van and 19 people evacuated to safety as heavy downpours sparked major flooding in London on Wednesday evening.
Around 40 firefighters were called to the scene in Wembley, where an area of around one square mile was left beneath flood water as deep as one metre.
Around 20mm of rain fell in some parts of the capital on Wednesday, forecasters said.
Photos taken in Wembley on Wednesday evening showed roads submerged, and parked cars stuck in around 10 inches of flood water.
The square-mile affected was in the area from Tokyngton Avenue to Stonebridge Road and Harrow Road.
Brent Council said “a number of households” in Tokyngton Avenue were flooded after “extremely heavy rainfall...overwhelmed the existing flood preventive measures in place”.
One man was trapped inside a van near Stonebridge Station by the floods and had to be rescued by London Fire Brigade, while 19 other people were taken to safety.
Crews are working to divert flood water and have evacuated 14 people to safety and rescued a man trapped in a van following flooding in #Wembley.
— London Fire Brigade (@LondonFire) August 2, 2023
Take a look at our advice on what to do if your property is flooding https://t.co/WAPgg1XX9o pic.twitter.com/zDAXN7uhb4
Point Place, Tokyngton Avenue, and Argenta Way were closed on Wednesday evening, while LFB urged people to “please avoid the area and don’t drive through flood water”.
Firefighters were scrambled to the scene shortly after 3.30pm and spent more than six hours working to divert the water, not leaving until shortly before 10pm.
Rain is expected to continue throughout Thursday, but less severely.
Met Office forecaster Amy Bokota said: “Thursday's going to be quite a grey day and quite breezy as well, but winds are not expected to be as strong and with that there will be some showers, which could be heavy at times.
“There's not expected to be any impacts or warnings on the back of that, there could be up to five to 10mm of rainfall in an hour, and maybe 20 to 25mm over a couple of hours if rain becomes persistent in places.
Londoners had been warned on Wednesday to brace for a day of heavy rains and winds, with a “good chance” car and bus journeys would take longer because of standing water or hail, and “possible” delays to rail services.
That warning was lifted by Thursday, although rain was still expected.
“Generally it's going to be a lot better, most places a little bit brighter and those showers will be less widespread,” said Ms Bokota.
LFB has issued advice on how to prepare for and deal with flooding.
A spokesperson said: “Recent heavy rain has shown how quickly a flash flood can inundate a street. Our firefighters know what they need to do in a flood, but it’s important Londoners know as well. We’d encourage you to follow our flooding advice.”
