(Jul 19, 2007)

Study shows how flood disconnected Britain and France

By Thomas Wagner

LONDON (AP) - One of Earth's largest-ever floods broke apart a strip of land connecting what is now Britain and France, permanently separating them, researchers say.

The flood unleashed about 35 million cubic feet of water per second, 100 times greater than the water discharge of the Mississippi River.

The natural disaster, which occurred about 400,000 years ago during a glacial period, was later followed by rising sea levels that created what is now the English Channel, the study says.

It is not known if humans died during the disaster, but the study says the flooding may have ended migration by early humans and mammals such as horses across the land, which was at least 28 miles wide.

Full News