THE Environment Agency has admitted a pumping station on Canvey was not working for two hours during Sunday's storm.

The Agency said on Sunday the pumps were initially out for 12 minutes following a power cut caused by a lightning strike.

But on Wednesday night an Environment Agency report revealed the Croppenburg pumping station developed a fault and was out of action for two hours.

A spokesman for the Environment Agency said the information was already in the public domain and the pumps were not responsible for the flooding on Canvey.

The Environment Agency has today released a statement saying they had published a statement saying one pump was off for two hours on Canvey Island Town Council's website but when the Echo asked for clarification for how long the pumps had been off on Monday and Tuesday they reiterated that the Croppenburg Road pump had been off for only 12 minutes.

Full story in tomorrow's Echo.