A landlord, whose Colliers Wood bar was devastated by the recent floods, has said it may never reopen.
Graham Wright lost thousands of pounds worth of stock when the basement of Blue, in Colliers Wood High Street, was left under muddy water. Barrels of beer, ice-making machines and cooling equipment were all swamped.
Mr Wright, 40, said the pub will have to remain closed for at least one month but he is considering its future as he fears it may be struck by floods again. He blamed the flooding of his basement on the condition of nearby drains and said these were still blocked up.
He said: "I am debating whether to open up again.
"Even if we do restore the work, if we get another flash flood it could happen again."
Mr Wright opened the bar in January and had been due to start serving meals this week.
"I have spent a hell of a lot of money to get our business up and running. This was a complete blow to us, " he said.
He has also been forced to withdraw his offer of sponsorship for September's Balham and Tooting Carnival, leaving the festival unable to go ahead.
Mr Wright is planning to sue Transport for London (TfL) which is responsible for the maintenance of drains on red routes.
TfL said the flooding was caused by the extreme nature of the storm which overwhelmed the drains, but Mr Wright disputed this.
"It is nonsense," he said. "Of course they are not designed to cope with a deluge but even if they were state-of-the-art and installed last week they would not work because they are blocked."
A spokesman for TfL said: "TfL clean all drains on red route roads on an annual basis, with suspected trouble areas inspected and cleaned more frequently if needed."
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