PREMIUM --

A worker at the Thames Barrier pauses during a memorial ceremony on Friday 31 January, 2003, to the people who lost their lives in devastating floods which hit Britain in 1953.
The ceremony in south London coincided with the Thames Barrier's 20th anniversary. Hurricane winds and high tides caused havoc after hitting the east coast of Britain 50 years ago, leaving 307 dead in the UK and thousands more evacuated from their homes. See PA Story ENVIRONMENT Floods/Thames. PA Photo: Chris Young.