Flooding near the Bull's Head car park off Dundonald Street, Pembroke, has touched off a wave of fury.

Management of the Olympic Club and Masters Limited spoke out in frustration yesterday as they counted their losses after heavy rainfall on Tuesday night.

Both businesses complained that this was the second time in the last three months that flooding had occurred outside their premises and that the Corporation of Hamilton was slow to react to the problem which had cost them time and money.

Nick Jones of the Olympic Club told The Royal Gazette water was as high as five inches in the club, soaking the carpet and various other equipment.

He estimated that nearly $2,500 worth of damage was caused to the club. And he said: "I refuse to pay my Corporation taxes until something is done.'' "The water in the road had to be nearly a foot and a half,'' he added. "The street was completely flooded.

"I called the Police. But they never showed up. And the Corporation of Hamilton workers told me to find my own cones when I asked them if they had any in order to block off the street from traffic.'' He said eventually he did just that. But Corporation trucks were speeding up and down the street and that had caused "a tidal wave of sorts''.

"This has to have something to do with the car park,'' Mr. Jones noted, "because the flooding was never this bad before then. It has to be an engineering problem.'' He said Hamilton Mayor William de V. Frith and Corporation secretary Roger Sherratt both visited the club yesterday morning and surveyed the damage.

Masters Limited president Susan Wilson said she believed the matter would be considered more of a priority if it would have occurred in a different section of town.

"Had this happened on Front Street or Reid Street or Church Street this would not have been tolerated,'' Ms Wilson said, "but I guess we're considered back of town.'' Masters' employees worked through Tuesday night in order to get the store ready in time for opening hours yesterday, she noted. The value of damage has not yet been estimated.

But she stressed that Mr. Frith was extremely helpful and that he showed up without having to be called to view the damage.

However, Mr. Sherratt said the problem of flooding in that area was very much a concern of the Corporation.

The problem of flooding had less to do with the car park and more to do with the Pembroke Canal that ran directly beneath it, he explained.

The canal, which runs from Glebe Road to Mills Creek, overflows during heavy rainfall and the area in which Masters and the Olympic Club were located was very close to sea level.

He said: "Any buildings within a few feet of the canal are likely to be subject to flood.'' Mr. Sherratt added that the Corporation and Government had carried out a joint study some six months ago to look at how best to handle the problem.

"I'm afraid we don't have any magic answers today,'' Mr. Sherratt said.

"This is a very broad problem.'' Mr. Sherratt also dismissed the idea that the Corporation cared less about the area near Bull's Head than the properties near the front of town. He said all of Hamilton was their concern.

"If you look at Front Street and Reid Street they are several feet above sea level,'' he noted. "That area (near Bull's Head) is a low area, but we are certainly very sympathetic to their plight.'' The Fire Services was kept busy on Tuesday night after receiving 21 calls, 17 of them about flooding.

Firemen went to Pinetree Lane, Somerset after a report of a pole fire. They were were also called out to the airport where a half inch of water had collected in the British Airways departure lounge. Lightning also struck the roof of a home at Mount Pleasant Road, Sandys Parish, causing nearly $5,000 worth of damage.