A MULTI-MILLION pound clean-up operation is underway across East Devon following days of flooding which wreaked havoc on major roads across the district and forced people from their homes.
Major routes into coastal towns including Exmouth, Budleigh Salterton and Sidmouth were cut off for several hours during torrential downpours.
Abandoned cars, landslips and fire engines conducting pumping operations were familiar sights in all corners of the district, while rivers including the Otter and the Clyst burst their banks, flooding surrounding roads and rendering them impassable.
The main cause of the flooding is due to the level of run-off from already saturated fields following one of the wettest summers on record. The region's drainage system also became overloaded due to heavy rainfall.
Emergency services personnel, staff members from Devon County Council's Highways Department, East Devon District Council's Streetscene team, South West Water, and the Environment Agency have been praised for their efforts as they worked round the clock over the weekend to deal with the situation.
Cllr Stuart Hughes, Devon county portfolio holder for highways and transportation, who is also the lead member for flooding, said the estimated cost to the authority would likely run into several million pounds.
As the floodwater recedes, people across the region have recalled their experiences of being caught up in the deluge.
The Environment Agency's £4.2m flood defence scheme, that was implemented following major flooding in 2008, proved to work in the town.
Gary Shaw, watch commander at Ottery St Mary fire station said his crew of retained fire fighters attended eight incidents in the area throughout Saturday night from 6pm until 4am.
He said that the crews' tireless efforts were hindered by the theft of their sand bags earlier in the day.
Commander Shaw said their first call out was to move an electric cable which had been blown over and was hanging "dangerously" close to an oil tank near Fenny Bridges.
They were then called to help at a residential property on Barrack Road in Ottery St Mary which had become flooded and one on Victoria Terrace later on. But Commander Shaw explained the difficulty facing crews of trying to pump out the water at a faster rate than it was pouring in.
"There wasn't much respite between jobs," he said.
The village of Feniton was one of the worst areas to be hit by flooding with dozens of people forced out of their homes.
A £1.2m flood protection scheme was introduced by the Environment Agency last year which is being spread over three years to tackle the ongoing issue in the village.
At about 9pm the crew from Ottery were sent to Feniton where Commander Shaw estimated about 50 homes were affected by flooding.
The crew spent several hours pumping flood water out of people's gardens and firing it out over the other side of the railway line.
Commander Shaw described the night as one of the busiest the crew has experienced in a long time.
Meanwhile, watch commander Rob Crisp at Sidmouth Fire Station said his crew were kept busy from about 7pm until 2pm the next day.
"Our first call was to serious flooding in the Bulverton area of Sidmouth where several properties were becoming flooded," he said.
"Our job was to pump water away to reduce the water level in the area."
A second crew went to the scene of a car that had become trapped on Strawberry Hill, West Hill, but when they arrived the driver had escaped and the car was seen floating in the water.
On their return to Sidmouth the crew had trouble getting through Newton Poppleford which had become flooded as the River Otter burst its banks.
Commander Crisp said the crew had to assist people who had become stuck and subsequently had to abandon their vehicles.
One fire engine went to Beer to help with the rescue of a family from their home which had become severely flooded.
"It was a busy night," Commander Crisp added. "In 38 years on the job this was one of the worst affects of flooding I've ever seen."
Exmouth Town Council's out-of-office number for sandbags received calls up until 11.30pm on Saturday from residents who were experiencing flooding.
Exmouth Town Council is planning a flood summit in the New Year.
Budleigh Salterton Cricket Club's Ottermouth ground became submerged after the River Otter burst it banks. Neil Rice, club chairman, said the damage is the worst the club has ever seen.
Mr Rice said the playing ground would have to be re-seeded which could cost about £3,000 and he estimates that refurbishments, including the rewiring of electrics, could cost a further £10,000.
He said: "We're constantly having to spend thousands and thousands of pounds following flood damage when we should be spending it on sports equipment."
Mr Rice said the club is in discussion with landowners, Clinton Devon Estates to find an alternative site.
Paul Coe, the landlord of the Bowd Inn on the A3052 at Sidmouth, said the road was closed intermittently in Newton Poppleford due to the River Otter bursting its banks and pouring on to the road, the water also engulfed the hamlet of Harpford.
He also described seeing cars stuck in flood water on the main road into Sidmouth.
"Water was pouring off the fields on to the road," he said.
Budleigh resident, Sarah Giles, who is a PCSO for Topsham, took photos of the flooding as she cycled up the Otter Valley to Harpford through Otterton.
"The river burst its banks and flooded the whole valley," she said. "Fields had become lakes and in places water was several feet deep. There had been many landslips from high banks as well.
"What I found though was a really positive community spirit along the way."
Feniton resident Jenny Wilson, of Ottery Road, described watching sewerage pouring into her garden as the system overflowed through the manhole covers in the road.
She and several neighbours nervously watched sewerage rising in their toilet bowls and were unable to flush their toilets for several days.
Ms Wilson said this problem has been ongoing in times of heavy rain for around 15 years.
Ottery St Mary town councillor Roger Giles, said: "It would have been absolute carnage and misery if the defence scheme hadn't worked."
East Devon District Council stressed that construction work at new town Cranbrook has continued and no homes are being built in the flood plains.
Because the community is being built next to the River Clyst flood plain, Cranbrook and other developments in the Exeter and East Devon Growth Point were granted planning permission after consultation with the Environment Agency.
Mike Owen project manager, said: "Cranbrook is not at risk from flooding.
"We have been working closely with the Environment Agency for many years now and have a drainage strategy in place based on their recommendation – the drainage infrastructure for Cranbrook is being provided in accordance with that strategy."
