The burst main sent water rushing across the busy road

Flooding from a burst water main has closed a section of one of London’s busiest commuter routes and left at least 760 homes without water.

Several feet of water settled on the North Circular Road at the Brent Cross flyover, causing the route to be closed in both directions from 08:00 BST.

There were extensive queues in both directions and congestion on surrounding routes.

Thames Water said repairs to the road may take up to a week.

A spokesman for the water firm estimated fixing the burst pipe would take two days while it would take up to a week for new concrete to set.

‘Really sorry’

He added the firm had received “at least 760 calls” from homes in the area reporting interruptions to their water supply but could not give an estimate for total households affected.

A Transport for London spokesman said: “Our teams have put a diversion in place.

“Drivers should seek alternative routes or allow extra time for their journey.

“We are working with Thames Water and they assure us they are working to repair the water main as quickly as possible.”

A Thames Water spokesman said: “Our engineers are currently on the scene working to turn off the water running through the broken section of pipe before they dig it up and replace it.

“Water escaping from the broken main is flooding three west-bound lanes of the carriageway.

“We are really sorry for the disruption. We are working as hard as we can to get things back to normal.”

BBC