FLOODED LONDON.

Grey River Argus, 10 January 1928, Page 5

FLOODED LONDON.

THOUSANDS HOMELESS.

RELIEF DEPOTS CROWDED.

Danger of a Furtl

ther Catastrophe.

RELIEF depots crowded. LONDON, January 8. Hundreds are homeless ,hungry and scantily clad, including many children, who are crowding the relief depots, where many firms and individuals are sending gifts of food and clothing Nearly a thousand homes are- uniliabitable owing to the water carrying in creosote tar from the riverside mills. The majority of the bedding has Been ruined. The damage at Bermamdsey is ruined. The damage at T.ermonsdey estimated at £lOO,OOO. Important places flooded include Woolwich A z jf nal, Billingsgate Marget, and office of the Ministry of Pensions ... rKew. This entails delay in pay! J* ex-servicemen pensioners, but th British Legion is attending to ca’. / of necejsaity. The Salvation Army is distributing food in the poorer areas. and has established kitchens. The Mayor of Lambeth, who has opened a fund, states that thousands of people living thing. A large number of societies I in basements virtually lost overyresponded to an appeal for imme’iliate relief . Everybody is assured of beds and meals. Veterinaries are treating gratis hundreds of cats dogs, and poultry. Many houses are condemned in the lloTseferrv Road area, as dangerovT TOWER MOAT FLOODED. LONDON, January 8. The flood fortunately did nut invade the underground railway, but the trams are at a standstill in Lambeth and adjoining districts. In whole streets of houses, the water lose half-way upstairs. Probably the worst below Blackfriars, where warehouse basements were filled. The i damage will be unknown until the water out. Waves swept over the bank out I side the Tower, filling the ancient i moats. The Tower looks like its old self after centuries. The water is mostly fifteen feet to twenty feel

deep upon the guards* drill ground. A tidal wave worked havoc on the East Coast. It swept whole colonies of beach huts seawards between 1- rinton, Walton ami Clacton, aud festooned th»* vilage of Salcot with seaweed. It marooned Brightlingsca, and drove the residents of the River Black waters to the upper stories. The flood damaged the wharves at Strood, Rochester, Chatham, and Gillingham. Many victims of the Thames flood, including hundreds of owners of valuable motor cars inundated in Putney garages, were amazed to find fhat insurances were void, as the companies , contend that the flood is an “Act of I God.” LONDON, January 8. Every precaution is being taken to deal with a repetition of the flood. All the basements and ground floors in the danger zone were evacuated. The police patrolled the Embankment. Shelters and food have been provided for the temporary homeless, and several relief funds have opened. At midnight large crowds of sTgJitscers from the theatres and parties assembled on the Embankment. The river was high, but high water was safely passed without flnods recurring anywhere. Their Majesties telegraphed the Mayor of Westminster sympathising with the relatives of the flood victims. The King is contributing £lOO and the Queen £5O to the relic' fund.

Heroic Rescuer Trapped in Basement. (Received January *J, at 8.40 p.m.) LONDON, January 9. Though their is a danger of a further catastrophe mni.il Tuesday night there was no recurrence of the floods of Sunday night. Details accumulating emphasize the horror of the tragic happening, which was increased by the total unprepaiedness of the victims. “Good God the River is ove* flowing, g et up quick— the .t*n’ cried "one woman to her sleeping husband. This was typical of the first warning in many homes. Terror was increased by the failure of the lighting. Galloping mounted police gave warning in many cases, and in others, police or firemen wore quickly on the scene otherwise many more would have been drowned, as sleeping in basements is common in the poor districts near the river. The trapped men and women in Westminster must have known their doom as surely as sailors in a sunken submarine. The heroine and hero of the tragedy were Miss Frankie Isse, and Mr. Frank Wellsher. The woman awoke to find her bedroom half full of water and the furniture floating around. She escaped through a window, where she found a boy drowning, to whom she tied a rope and hauled him to safety. Wellsher lost his life trying to rescue people in a Westminster basement. He was a champion swim-

mer and brought some men and women to an upper floor; returned 1o the basement but the door banged behind him and was held by the force nf the water, so that Wellsher was unable to escape again. The full extent of

the damage is only slowly being re\ealed. GUARD ASLEEP IN FLOODED DUNGEON. Billingsgate Market and Thames street were flooded, the position being very serious. A Yeoman of the Guard, sleeping in a dungeon of the Tower of London awoke to find his trestle bed floating and when lie jumped out it was into four feet of Water. Insurance experts point out that insurance for such damage is not recoverable, unless specified in a policy. POOR HOMES THE GREATEST SUFFERERS. Poor homfes and furniture are covered with filthp slime, and pianos and other valuables are spoiled. The occupiers of some of the wrecked homes earned considerable money by charging fees to curiosity mongers. Thus women stepped from luxurious ears, paid half a crown to see the real Ufa chambers of horrors, with broken doors, overturned furniture and drying bedding. DAMAGED ART TREASUR.ES.

Much of the damage is not so serious as at first was feared. Thus, alarmist reports spoke of the damage to pictures in the Tate Gallery, running into hundreds of thousands sterling. It is true that many sketches including Turners, were engulfed but Sir Charles Holmes, director of the National Gallery says that they survived better than any one hau hoped Most of the Turner sketches were pencil outlines without public interest as real treasures. They were exhibited on the ground floor where the uninjured sketches are drying nicely as they -were promptly laid out on the floor of the gallery, and the corners pinned down to prevent crinkling. A dozen Landseer paintings were seriously damaged. This is probably Iho worst loss at the Tate. Gallejy. Water poured through a breach in the River wall into the Hurlingham Polo Ground nt Putney, and the Tennis Courts at Raneleigh Gardens where the water was like a. river weir. Th.' bursting of the seawall .at Mal.lon in Essex, also caused s' 'ous damage. The River Clone over'.mwed its Koks at Colchester. Fifty motor cars parked for a dance near Maldon were found by their owners in four feet of water.