Stench over London

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A stinkcloud of manure drifting over from France hung over London yesterday leaving thousands of London commuters gagging.

And it gets worse - the smell will hang around until Monday, according to reports.

The hideous stench, which is believed to have drifted over from the continent, prompted thousands of worried complaints to radio stations and online forums.

The cow-dung stink assaulted commuters’ senses across every corner of the capital with complaints coming from south Croydon to Edmonton, and Barking to Hampton Court.

Experts said a strong easterly wind was carrying it across the Channel from north eastern France and Belgium where farmers fertilise their fields with manure at this time of year.

LBC radio was flooded with concerned callers this morning. Emma Jackson, from Golders Green, said: "I got blown back by it when we opened the door this morning. I'm not a country girl but it just smells very, very like manure. It's foul.”

Jim Robins, from Wandsworth, said: "I left home this morning in Battersea and I thought I'd trod in something or the bins were smelling."

And South African Sean Napier, from East Dulwich, said: "In Cape Town and we used to have this waft come over every once in a while from the sewage works, but it was never as  bad as this stench.”

Chris Masters, from Twickenham, said: “I stepped out of my front door and had to check my shoes for dog pooh. It smelt like raw sewage. I could smell it all the way to work in Clapham - what a stink.”

On the Yahoo chat forum, JS said: "Pretty much my entire office has smelt it and they all live at different ends of London (some in Reading and Essex!)."

Met Office forecaster John Hammond said explained two days of strong easterly winds had brought the stink all the way to the capital.

“If you get a brisk enough wind it won’t take long for those smells to reach us from continental Europe.

“London isn’t far away from where there are a number of agricultural processes going on in France and Belgium and we think that’s the main reason for the smell.”

But he added that the smell hopefully disappear by tomorrow as the wind changes direction and rain arrives.

Have you smelt it? We want your comments!