4:37pm Wednesday 24th June 2009
THE streets of Thamesmead were awash last night as marauding youngsters travelled the town letting off the fire hydrants.
Police, the fire brigade and engineers from Thames Water were called to the area after receiving multiple calls from residents.
The trouble started in Kale Road at around 9.30pm and it was the first of 10 incidents in streets spanning both the Bexley and Greenwich parts of Thamesmead, which lasted until almost midnight.
Because the hydrants hold water under pressure for use by firefighters in case of a fire, once opened, the jets of water were reaching more than 60ft high.
Most people were convinced they were witnessing burst pipes.
But when the emergency services arrived on the scene, it became obvious the hydrants were the source of the water.
As the calls continued to come in, a number reported seeing gangs of young people at the scene, in one case putting detergent into the water jet and in another, prising up the hydrant cover.
Engineers from Thames Water turned off the hydrants and Bexley police say they were not able to identfy anyone responsible for the mayhem
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