It has a 900-year-old catherdral, Roman walls and one of the finest art gallerys outside London.

But now Chichester has turned the desperate battle to stop major flooding into its brand new tourist attraction.

Enterprising district council officers have publised a guide to the 13 miles of piping which is snaking its way round the city to pump water out of the River Lavant to prevent it overflowing.

The "tube trail" takes visitors on a mile long circular walk around the city describing what the pipelines are in place for and describing the risks to areas which have been heavily sandbagged.

One of the areas visitors are told about is the site of the old Rowes Garage where more than 30 pumps are taking water out of the Lavant and putting it back into the river at a safer place.

The operation is to ease pressure on culverts dating back to Victorian times which carry a section of the river beneath the city.

Yesterday the "tube trail" came into its own as the operation to prevent a repeat of the 1994 floods was stepped up after water levels in the Lavant increased dramatically as rain water poured off saturated downland above the city.

Firefighters fought a day long battle to pump water and shore up river bank walls which were in danger of collapsing.

At the back of a housing complex in The Hornet an artificial lagoon was created out of sandbags and wooden boarding to try and contain floodwater if the river bursts its banks.

West Sussex County Council community safety director, Ken Lloyd, who is in charge of the pumping operation, said: "It has been a worrying day and we have had to come up with some fairly ingenious solutions in case of flooding, but we are managing to contain the situation."

Mr Lloyd said he welcomed the "tube trail" leaflet.

He said: "People are genuinely interested and if they can follow what is happening it is a good way of getting them involved.

"We have not found that people are getting in the way of any of the operation."

A district council spokesman said the leaflet was designed to show people that serious flooding had been prevented and that the city was still open for business.

He said: "The leaflets have been produced in response to the phenomenal interest in the engineering work around Chichester."