Swinton clean-up starts as burst pipe floods town centre

A clean-up operation has begun after a burst water main flooded part of a town centre in South Yorkshire.

Church Street in Swinton was impassable and nearby businesses were swamped after gallons of water escaped from the ruptured pipe on Wednesday.

Jason Brown, who runs Partner's DIY, said the flooding would "financially really hit me".

Yorkshire Water said it had caused "significant" damage to the road, but supply to customers had been restored.

Mr Brown said when he arrived at his shop he had been unable to open the shutters as the electrics "had blown" as a result of the flooding.

"When I got in all the entryway was full of mud and it had washed its way to the back of the shop," he said

"The carpets and mats are soaked."

He said a number of items in the shop had been damaged and he would need new flooring throughout.

Church Street remains closed while engineers work to repair the damage to the surface.

Deb's Barber Shop owner, Debbie Pearce said she learned of the flooding from friends on social media and said it had been a "shock" to see the damage it had caused.

"I came down in my wellies and it had just gone in to my entrance and a bit into my shop," she said.

"[It was] unbelievable how much water was going down the road.

"We had flooding a couple of years ago and I had to have new carpets in, but thankfully this is not as bad."

Mr Brown said the closure of the main road had left him with "virtually nil" trade.

"It's going to financially really hit me. We're a popular, busy shop, been here 40 years, a family shop, and the trade is just non-existent," he added.

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