Floods hit about 900 properties

A car partly submerged on Earl Street in Oxford

About 900 properties have been flooded in Oxfordshire due to the torrential rain, the Environment Agency said.

The agency estimated about 150 homes in Oxford were among those affected.

In Abingdon, where the severe flood warning remains on the River Ock, 570 properties were flooded and high water levels in Wallingford will continue.

The agency is monitoring water levels around Osney Mead substation. Meanwhile, the Queen has sent her sympathies to the beleaguered county.

They have been saying the Thames will peak every few hours since Saturday night and then last night, all of a sudden, floods Osney Island resident Paul Hughes

About 125 residents from Osney Island, Earl Street and Duke Street have been moved from their homes and some are now being housed at the Kassam Stadium.

Paul Hughes, on Osney Island, said: "They have been saying the Thames will peak every few hours since Saturday night and nothing has happened, then last night, all of a sudden, floods.

"It's got to a point where, if I hear something, I don't believe it."

One firefighter, who asked not to be named, said: "I just think they [The Environment Agency] are making it up half the time and they don't really know for certain what is going to happen until it happens."

The agency said levels are still high in Wallingford and will continue to be so.

As spokesman for the agency said: "No flood defences failed, although river water and, or, surface water have overwhelmed many locations.

"The Kidlington Flood Defence Scheme (River Cherwell) has successfully protected many homes in north Oxford."

Local authorities in Oxfordshire have now joined forces with the British Red Cross to launch a national flood relief appeal fund to help those affected by the flooding in the county and in other parts of the country.

Over the weekend, the county council transformed the Kassam Stadium into a makeshift centre ready to house up to 1,500 people, and police were advising residents who needed shelter to make their way there.

Thames Valley Police said emergency services had begun to evacuate people from about 250 homes in the Osney area of Oxford overnight. More than 90 people had left their homes by Wednesday morning.

The roads affected by flooding are Botley Road, in the vicinity of Osney, East Street, West Street, South Street, Bridge Street, Riverside Road and Earl Street.

Two of the main roads into Oxford, Botley and Abingdon Roads, are totally closed.

Sandbags delivered

Dr Evan Harris, Liberal Democrat MP for Oxford West and Abingdon, has criticised the flood defences in the area, saying they were no longer able to cope.

"There's now a whole-scale evacuation of homes in the area, hundreds of homes are being evacuated because they've been flooded, and it's not clear that the water levels have reached their peak," he said.

"Despite this area being flooded in 2000 and 2003, both of which were described as a one-in-40-year event, it's clearly now a three-in-seven-year event."

People evacuate from the Osney area of Oxford

Severe flood warnings remain in force for the Thames - from Oxford to Abingdon - and for the River Ock - from Charney Bassett to Abingdon.

The Thames is expected to peak at Wallingford and Henley.

It has already burst its banks there and some homes have been flooded.

John Lloyd, of Oxfordshire Fire and Rescue Service, said: "We've got a steady but constant rise of flood water levels within Oxford city centre particularly on the western side of the city."

In preparation for rivers bursting their banks, thousands of sandbags were delivered to households across the county.

Oxfordshire fire chiefs have divided the county into 11 areas where firefighters will assess local situations.

Keith Wheal, head of the Oxfordshire County Council Countryside Service, said: "We would like to warn people to stay away from river and canal towpaths until water levels have significantly dropped. "

Sandbags have been made available in Bridge End car park in Dorchester and Kings Road car park in Henley, while a further delivery of 60 tons of sand is expected in Henley.

Many primary schools were forced to shut early for the summer holidays because of the threat of flooding and many roads were closed.