A busy main road was left almost completely submerged and at risk of collapse after a major water main burst this morning.

Blackstock Road, in Finsbury Park, could be closed for up to five days after gallons of water spewed out of the broken pipe from around 10am this morning.

Large parts of the road are underwater and the road is closed to traffic in both directions and will remain closed for several days. The water pressure has left a hole in the tarmac and there are fears the road’s structure could be damaged and be unsafe for heavy vehicles, like buses, to cross – Blackstock Road is a busy bus route.

The pipe – which is 10 ins in diameter – burst outside City and Islington College, at the Finsbury Park end of the road, near Hackney Police’s Brownswood headquarters.

Sgt Richard Berns tweeted: “The road is flooded and may collapse.”

Thames Water turned off the water supply at around 1pm and said no customers have lost their water supply as a result of this.

A spokesman said: “A 10-inch water pipe has burst on Blackstock Road, causing substantial damage to the carriageway. Engineers are on site repairing the pipe and will be working to get the road re-opened as soon as possible.”