Emergency work to stop flash floods affecting businesses will start in the next few months.

Southern Water will sink a 750,000-litre tank below ground to take storm water which pours into nearby buildings.

John Hynan, owner of Grate Fireplaces in Church Road, Portslade, was hit again when storm drains overflowed during torrential rain yesterday.

A £100,000 storm drain laid by Southern Water 18 months ago was unable to cope with the deluge.

Rainwater backed up into the sewers sending sewage into properties bordering Church Road.

During last year's floods Mr Hynan's fireplace restoration business was submerged under 2ft of sewage water.

He said: "We arrived to find fireplaces and furniture floating around the ground-floor workshop and display area with all sorts of unpleasant things in the water.

"Southern Water and the council were supposed to have done work to stop it happening again. But it hasn't solved the problem and we had water and sewage coming in from the drains again.

"If it hadn't stopped raining when it did our stock could have been damaged. We can't get insurance now because this keeps happening."

Traders and residents spent ten weeks last year coping with disruption caused by Southern Water laying new storm drains in Church Road.

Yesterday residents in nearby Vale Road were furious when their street again came to resemble a fast-flowing river.

Michelle Bradish said: "It is disgusting every time it rains heavily, the drains and sewers in this area cannot cope. We had a sea of sea sewage running past our house and we all thought we would be flooded again."

Her neighbour Ali Lloyd Jones, 36, said: "I have been outside my house trying to direct motorists away as every time a car goes by, it creates a wash which comes into my home."

A Southern Water spokesman said the flash floods were caused by poor drainage on The Downs to the north of Portslade.

Rainwater raced down from the hills and the drains at the end of Church Road were unable to cope.

He said: "We are carrying out £10 million of emergency flood prevention work throughout our area, and Church Road is included in that.

"We hope to begin work installing a 750,000 litre tank there to hold excess water until it can drain away safely.

"There are two problems in this area. One is with the surface water, which we have addressed by improving the storm drains, and the other is with the foul sewer, which we will deal with by installing the tank because it would cost too much to put in another sewer.

"We are aware of what is needed to alleviate the problems which occur during heavy rainfall and we are dealing with it."

Work on the tank should begin by the end of the year or early next year.