The Environment Agency is investigating whether or not sea defences in West Sussex trapped flood water, making flooding there worse.
Flood water is being pumped away from parts of West Sussex where many people were forced to flee their homes.
Residents living in Bracklesham Bay said the water level only dropped when an emergency channel was dug.
However, Environment Secretary Caroline Spelman said the defences were not to blame.
The Environment Agency said no further properties had flooded overnight but it was keeping a watch on river levels.
It added that teams had been working round the clock with other emergency responders, checking flood defences and clearing blockages.
Gordon Wilson, from the Environment Agency, said: "We're investigating to try to understand what has led to such severe flooding here.
"And it is possible that given the diameters of pipes we put in as an interim measure, they were not sufficient to cope with such a huge amount of rain in such a short space of time."
Bracklesham resident Christopher Purchase said the water level remained static until the digger cut through the sea defences.
"It's pouring out of there like a plug out of the bath," he said.
However, Ms Spelman, who was visiting the area, said the Environment Agency did not believe the sea defences caused the floods, but the "sheer volume" of rainfall.
She added: "I've been very impressed by the emergency services response and all the other partners involved... but above all the community, and the way everyone pulled together to deal with an extreme weather event of this kind."
Roads impassableRising flood waters affected about 250 homes in the village of Elmer and caravans on two sites in Bracklesham.
Two flood warnings remain in place for the River Arun watercourse at the Aldingbourne Rife in Bersted and Felpham.
West Sussex Fire and Rescue Service said it had dealt with about 1,000 calls in 24 hours, evacuating hundreds of homes and pumping water from them.
Sean Ruth, deputy county fire officer for West Sussex, said it had been "an incredibly busy time" and it was necessary to seek help from neighbouring fire services in East Sussex and Hampshire.
Many roads had been impassable due to flooding. Closures remain in force on the A29 Lidsey Road at Woodgate and several minor roads to the west of the county.
There are also restrictions on the A259 at Littlehampton and A281 London Road at Henfield.
Nine schools in Bognor Regis and Chichester were either closed or partly closed because of the conditions, along with Felpham Community College.
Laburnum Grove Junior School in Bognor Regis remained shut on Wednesday due to serious flooding, and is not expected to reopen until next Tuesday.
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
From medals to a signed hard-boiled egg: Archive of 1950s British air speed king, also a WWII hero and Bond actor, is up for sale - Daily Mail
- Lieutenant Commander Peter Twiss smashed air speed record in 1956
- Collection includes wartime logbooks, Queen's commendation signed by Churchill, helmet he wore during record and flight goggles
- He was married five times and drove powerboat in From Russia With Love
- Memorabilia expected to fetch 12,000
By Nick Enoch
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He was a World War Two hero, an air speed king who later flew Concorde... and even appeared in a Bond film. And he was married five times.
Now, the astonishing archive of memorabilia that once belonged to Peter Twiss has emerged for sale.
Lieutenant Commander Twiss had already been awarded two gallantry medals for his part in the war when he smashed the air speed record at 1,132mph in 1956.
The legendary flyer, who went on to appear in From Russia With Love and was likened to great British action men Donald Campbell and Sir Edmund Hillary, died last year aged 90.
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A signed photo of Peter Twiss after landing at Boscombe Down, Wiltshire, when he broke the air speed record in 1956. This is just one of the mementoes of his colourful life which is going up for auction
Lieutenant Commander Twiss's logbook, goggles and his OBE along with a model of the Fairey Delta 2 in which he smashed the record at 1,132mph
Twiss (centre) shows Prime Minister Anthony Eden his FD2 jet in Chichester, West Sussex in 1956
Now his family are selling all his flying memorabilia, from his wartime logbooks to the helmet he wore when he set the air speed record over Chichester, West Sussex.
There is his Queen’s Commendation signed by Winston Churchill for when he saved himself and his unique supersonic jet by crash landing at 170mph after it stalled at 26,000ft.
His medal group, which includes the Distinguished Service Order with bar for his wartime achievements as well as his OBE for his record setting flight, is also for sale.
There are also hundreds of photos including one of Lt Cmdr Twiss stepping out of his Fairey Delta 2 jet minutes after breaking the record.
Other images include him receiving his OBE from Prince Philip, him showing the Queen around the aircraft and one of the jet remarkably intact following the 1955 crash landing.
The air ace even kept this hard-boiled egg signed by the record-breaking team from the County Hotel in Salisbury, Wiltshire where they stayed
Twiss crash landed this FD1 in 1955 at 170mph after the engine cut out at 26,000ft, leaving it remarkably intact
The medals in the Twiss collection are his WWII DSC and Bar, OBE, 1939-45 Star, Atlantic Star with Air Crew Europe Bar, Africa Star and War Medal with miniature group
Another highlight is eight volumes of hand-scribed logbooks detailing every flight he made in his astonishing career.
The entries describing several wartime dog-fights are written in a stoic and matter-of-fact fashion as is the note he jotted down after the historic speed flight.
He wrote: 'Exercise Metrical. Flight from Boscombe Down over course Chichester-Ford-Chichester-Boscombe Down. Success! World air speed record, 1,132mph average.'
Stunned auctioneer John Cameron was asked by Sq Cmdr Twiss’ widow and two daughters to examine the collection for probate purposes.
It had all been meticulously archived by the late flyer in a summer house of his home in Titchfield, Hampshire.
Twiss with the FD2 and the development team after breaking the air speed record
The late flyer (above) had meticulously archived the material in a summer house of his home in Titchfield, Hampshire
Part of the collection includes his Queen's Commendation signed by Winston Churchill (above) for when he saved himself and his unique supersonic jet by crash landing after it stalled
Mr Cameron, of Jacobs and Hunt auctioneers of Petersfield, which is now selling the archive, said: 'To be involved in the sale of the personal effects of a true legend like Peter Twiss is a huge honour.
'He was one of the last truly great British pioneers who risked their lives in passionate pursuit of adventure and immortality.
'He is right up there with Donald Campbell, Edmund Hillary and Captain Scott - all names instantly associated with British history in various fields of endeavour.
'While many thousands of pilots have since flown over 1,000mph, Peter Twiss will go down in the annals of aviation history as the first.
A secret report from WWII of Twiss shooting down a Junkers during a night fight over France in June 1944
A photo of Twiss receiving the Queen's Commendation from Prince Philip in 1955
The helmet Twiss wore when he set the air speed record over Chichester, West Sussex
'He was an amazing character. He did it all in his life-time; he was a war hero, air speed record holder, flew Concorde, appeared in a Bond film and was married five times.
'His life was real Boy’s Own stuff.
'The collection now for sale spans Peter Twiss’s entire flying career.
'It is probably the most important aviation collection to come onto the market for many years, the likes of which we may never see again.'
Sq Cmdr Twiss was a tea taster with Brooke Bond before he joined the Fleet Air Arm in 1939 and then trained as a pilot.
He was awarded the DSC for shooting down an Italian plane while providing air support to the Malta convoys in 1942.
In the days after D-Day, he flew Mosquito fighter bombers and shot down two German Junkers 88 bombers over France.
By 1954, he became a chief test pilot with Fairey Aviation and a year later he made the incredible crash landing on a training flight.
Twiss kept this tiny component that was discovered, after his record-breaking flight, to be faulty. It meant he would not have survived had he had to eject from the aircraft
The legendary airman shows the Queen and Prince Philip the FD2 in 1956
The airman was awarded the Segrave Trophy in 1956 in honour of his achievements. Given by the RAC, it commends those who stretch the limits of transport by land, sea and air
On March 10, 1956 he achieved speeds of 1,117mph and 1,147mph - an average of 1,132mph - beating the previous fastest time by more than 300mph.
The record flight went down in history, although it upset several gardeners along the south coast as the sonic boom caused greenhouses to smash.
The medals in the Twiss collection are his WWII DSC and Bar, OBE, 1939-45 Star, Atlantic Star with Air Crew Europe Bar, Africa Star and War Medal with miniature group.
The collection is being sold in 21 lots on June 22 with a very conservative estimate of 12,000.
FROM TWISS, WITH LOVE: AT HOME IN PLANES... AND BOATS
The thrill-seeker even appeared in a Bond film
To add to his list of achievements, Twiss also made cameo appearances in two movies.
In 1960, he flew a Fairey Swordfish torpedo aircraft in Sink The Bismarck.
And in the 1963 James Bond film From Russia With Love, he fired a machine gun at Sean Connery from a Fairey Marine speed boat.
The change from sky to sea would have proved no problem for him - during the sixties, the thrill seeker loved to race powerboats.
Peter Twiss (right) drives villain Morzeny's boat in From Russia With Love
In the 1960s, Twiss was just as happy on the sea as he was in the sky
Source: www.dailymail.co.uk
GMB sign partnership agreement with Asda - bdaily.co.uk
Union GMB have signed a national partnership agreement with Asda, covering 20 distribution depots.
The agreement creates a framework for the way Asda Distribution and GMB will work together.
Signatories include Paul Kenny GMB General Secretary; Mike Gooddie, director of Industrial Relations at Asda; Ian Stansfield, director of Distribution at Asda and Mick Rix GMB National Officer.
It follows 14 months of negotiations and consolidates the constructive relationship that has developed between ASDA Distribution and GMB in recent years.
GMB members voted overwhelmingly in favour of the proposals in May, which offer Asda distribution workers greater job security as result of improved productivity and efficiency in depots, as well as an industry leading focus on Health and Safety.
Paul Kenny, GMB General Secretary, said: “This agreement represents a huge step forward in the progressive relationship between GMB and ASDA.
“The growing confidence in the benefits collective bargaining can bring to productivity, staff retention, growth and positive and stable industrial relations is there for all to see following all the hard work of all the parties involved over the past few years.
“We have laid solid foundations and we must now work to build on this agreement which is a great success story for ASDA and GMB.”
Ian Stansfield, Director of Distribution at Asda, said: “This is a ground breaking agreement that brings our practices up to date and creates the framework for the way Asda Distribution and GMB will work together.
“It secures jobs, supports growth and ensures our operation is a efficient as possible at a time when our customers are relying on us more than ever to save them money everyday.
“More importantly, this agreement is based on solid foundations built in recent years and I look forward to a strong and productive relationship with the GMB.”
Source: www.bdaily.co.uk
These are the men we looked up to in our youth. What role models have youngsters had over the last few decades, Gassa, Vinnie Jones, George Best, no wonder the country is in a mess.
- DB1, Nottingham ENGLAND, 13/6/2012 21:16
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