The London Fire Brigade experienced one of its busiest nights of the year so far after thunderstorms swept the capital. Emergency operators have been called 400 times since midnight (Tuesday, June 23) as firefighters responded to numerous flooding calls, along with two house fires prompted by lightning strikes.
Flash flooding and road impacts
Some areas were also hit by flash flooding, including roads, causing disruptions across the city.
High-volume call procedure activated
Assistant Commissioner Pat Goulbourne said: “It has been a very busy night for our Control Officers, firefighters and officers. Shortly after 0400 hrs, due to a large number of calls received by the Brigade, we implemented our High-Volume Call procedure which means flooding calls where there is a risk to life are prioritised and crews then attend other calls as non-emergencies when they can.
“Operation Willow Beck was also temporarily stood up. Introduced in 2022 nationally by the Home Office and National Chiefs Fire Council, this is a pre-determined 999 call distribution procedure, which during times of extreme demand, can divert surplus emergency calls to unaffected fire and rescue service control rooms. I’d like to thank all of those colleagues in other fire rescue services who assisted us overnight, as well as our own staff for their hard work and professionalism during this busy period.”
