The Thames Barrier has been in record use over the past two months
The Thames Barrier At London, England (© John Alexander/Plainpicture) © (Bing Canada) Wallpaper Thames BarrierImage copyrightGETTY IMAGES The Thames Barrier has been in record use over the past two months. How does it work? A map released by its operator, the Environment Agency, in December showed how London would look if sea levels continued to rise and there was no barrier. The Houses of Parliament, the O2 arena, Tower Bridge, and areas including Southwark, the Isle of Dogs, Whitechapel and West Ham were shown to be flooded. The barrier, built in 1982 on the Thames on the eastern side of the capital at Woolwich, was designed to protect 48 sq miles (125 sq km) of central London from flooding caused by tidal surges. At the moment, with so much rainfall travelling down the Thames, there is a danger during high tide that the extra water will be pushed back up river by the sea and cause flooding in the capital and to the west. To prevent this, the barrier has been used at record levels,