A Jet site in Cornwall kept the county moving when flooding forced cars to use the forecourt as a road.

 

Barrie Richards, who runs St Blazey Service Station, closed for business and allowed cars to drive through his 110m-long forecourt and escape the six-foot deep flooding in the road.

 

The gesture led to floodwater covering a quarter of the site, and left jet washes coated in silt. "Flooding on the forecourt was being caused by vehicles moving too quickly and chucking up a two-foot tsunami, which left us completely lagged with four inches of thick of mud, sand and silt," said Barrie.

 

"The flood was caused by poor maintenance of the river infrastructure a mile away. The road brought the water down along with 300 tons of muck it was diabolical. In this instance nobody was seriously hurt, but unless there’s a better emergency plan in place, who knows what may happen next time."