WATER bosses have been slammed for failing to do enough to warn of devastating floods in Whitefield.

Residents in Oak Lane woke during the early hours of yesterday to find the street, gardens, and cars, swamped under three feet of water.

The water was pouring from a fractured underground main which caused the road in nearby Mersey Drive to collapse.

At least 12 homes were flooded and a number of parked cars were damaged by rising flood water. A major clean-up operation was launched by Bury Council to clear away a thick film of mud from the streets.

However, while United Utilities engineers battled to shut off the massive leak, locals said efforts should have been made by the company to alert residents to the problem and give them the chance to sandbag their homes and move cars away from the rising flood water.

Phil Cooper, of Oak Lane said: "By the time most people knew what was going on, the water was several feet deep and it was lapping against our doorsteps. A large part of Oak Lane, the pavements, gardens and a number of cars were covered in muddy water. Men from United Utilities were already working on stemming the flow but all it needed was someone from the firm to go round the houses, knocking on doors to wake us, so we could have moved our cars to a safe area and asked for sandbags to protect our homes."

Firefighters from Whitefield and the crew of a high volume appliance from Bolton spent four hours pumping away the flood water. Around a dozen properties suffered superficial damage while one resident was moved to temporary accommodation.

A spokeswoman for United Utilities said the company's priority in the early hours of yesterday was to stop the leak .

She said: "The priority for our field operatives is to minimise any damage by isolating the water main and restoring the water to customers who have no supplies. The best way for us to prevent further flood damage is to carry out this complex process as quickly as possible.

"We worked quickly to do this and then sent in a flood restoration team and loss adjusters, who arrived on site before 10am. They spent the morning talking to those affected and we are now arranging payments where there has been damage."

Deborah Mulqueen (36), who lives in nearby Chapel Walk, awoke at 3am. "I had no idea what was happening," she said.

Her boyfriend Peter Worthington (34), of Frankton Road, said: "It was as if a bomb had hit Oak Lane. It's just something you would never imagine happening. Oak Lane is caked in mud."

Mersey Drive will probably be closed until at least the end of the week. The pipe is being repaired but a large section of the road and footway will need resurfacing.