Chiswick Wakes Up To Storm Damage

Fallen trees causing problems on roads, rail and underground

Last night's storm has led to a significant number of fallen trees across the Chiswick area but no serious injuries were reported locally. A number of parked cars have been hit by falling trees.

The most serious incident in the borough was in the Bath Road area of Hounslow where two people died when three houses collapsed and two others were damaged in a suspected gas explosion. It is understood that a tree fell during the high winds early this morning onto a gas main around 07.35. Three people had to flee for their lives. The bodies of a man and a woman were found by police searching in the rubble seven hours later.

London Ambulance Service say a tree fell onto a van on Gunnersbury Avenue, just before 6.40am. An ambulance crew and responder in a car attended and treated a man in his 50s, who was conscious. He was complaining of back pain, and was immobilised using a board and neck collar before being taken to hospital. The road was later cleared.

A large branch of a tree fell on a Tesco articulated truck making a delivery to the store on Chiswick High Road around 7am this morning. A police spokesperson said that had the lorry not been there to block it, it could have fallen on a passerby. The driver was uninjured. He told ChiswickW4.com that he had been in the trailer when he heard a loud crash and came out to see the branch had toppled onto the roof of the truck, also breaking a street lamp in the process. He was waiting over five hours for rescue services to come and remove the branch. The area was sealed off by police.

Grove Park had two large trees down in separate incidents. A large tree fell across two parked cars in Bolton Road, disrupting the route of the 272 bus.

Pic of Bolton Road courtesy of Neil Wallis

The aftermath of the tree falling in Bolton Rd- Neil Wallis

Park Road resident Alan Darby took the above picture - a tree crushed a car opposite 92 Park Road this morning.

Another view of the fallen tree in Park Road from Ben Ong

The owner of the car told ChiswickW4.com that his daughter had woken up around 7 a.m. this morning, looked out the front bedroom window and saw that his Saab car, which was parked across the road from his house, had been crushed by the tree.

The tree also smashed the windscreen of another car parked on the other side of the road.

The fallen tree in Park Road

Throughout the morning people had been taking pictures of the tree and children have been playing on it. The road is closed off.

Wellesley Road is also closed off. A London Fire Brigade spokesman said it was due to a tree which fell in a back garden.

A short distance away from Wellesley Road, part of a fallen tree was partially blocking the road at the junction of Heathfield Gardens. The tree is in the grounds of a block of flats.

Heathfield Terrace opposite Turnham Green

Chiswick House and Gardens is closed today. A statement said: "Chiswick House and Gardens are closed to the public today (Monday) due to the severe weather which hit London this morning.  Several trees have fallen and tree debris is affecting many parts of the gardens. The site will remain closed until essential clearing works have taken place and the gardens made safe. Please check the site for information about re-opening times."

Hounslow Council said in a statement about the Hounslow incident that it was responding to the situation and liaising with the emergency services on scene.A spokesperson said: “We are handling the needs of those affected by the gas explosion and have now evacuated people from the properties. We are transporting them to the rest centre that we have set up.

”Twelve people were evacuated from the Bath Road area in Hounslow where the incident took place and an elderly woman was taken to hospital.

Earlier this morning Fishers Lane was blocked by a fallen tree by the railway bridge.

Fisher Lane blocked - Picture courtesy of Ken Young

Fallen tree on Chiswick Back Common - picture courtesy of Ian Wylie

Fallen tree by playground on Fishers Lane - picture courtesy of Ian Wylie

Tree down on Acton Green - picture courtesy of Des McConkey

Tree hits wall of Chiswick House Grounds - picture from @ruduss

Barrowgate Road blocked - picture courtesy of Stephen Large

Barrowgate Road blocked - picture courtesy of Paula Harry

Tree fallen on graves in cemetery by St. Nicholas's Church - picture courtesy of Tracey Szwagrzak

There are also reports of trees down on Cavendish Road and Roman Road. If you have information or pictures relating to the storm aftermath please send them to editor@chiswickw4.com.

A fallen tree partially blocked the road at the junction with Heathfield Terrace, and another tree was blown down inside the boundary wall of Turnham Green.

Gunnersbury Lane is closed by Ealing Common and the Ealing branch of the District line is currently not operating between Ealing Common and Turnham Green due to a tree having fallen on the track.

London Overground services are currently suspended with no indications of when they will resume.

South West Trains are not running services on the Hounslow Loop between Barnes Bridge and Hounslow which means that no trains are currently stopping in Chiswick.

Damage to the underpass to Chiswick House / Hogarth's House by Devonshire Passage - picture courtesy of Tracey Szwagrzak

Tiles ripped off the subway walls at the underpass near Hogarth roundabout- Ben Ong

This car in Rothschild Road escaped without a scratch

This car in Graham Road was damaged - pic Amber Middleton

October 28, 2013