Storm Dennis, which had ravaged the country over the weekend, followed on from Storm Ciara and Devon did not escaped its effects.

The repair and clear-up bill from the two storms is expected to cost at least £200,000, according to early estimates fromDevon County Council on Tuesday.

The authority said it was expecting that figure to rise as the clearance of several landslips continued and further damage was uncovered across the county.

West Devon has escaped relatively lightly in comparison to other areas of the UK.

A number of properties in Lydford were damaged overnight last Wednesday/Thursday (February 12/13) due to the weather and a blocked storm drain. Two fire crews from Tavistock attended and helped pump out the flood water.

One resident, Sara Carmichael, said her kitchen in the basement was filled with water from floor to ceiling and rose five inches into the lounge at ground level.

‘The kitchen has completely gone and the lounge is ruined,’ she said. ‘We have to move out for six months to clean and dry it out.’

Sara, her husband and her son – who is back visiting from university – are currently camping in the bedrooms without any heating or hot water until they find somewhere to relocate to.

‘The neighbours have been lovely helping us and letting us use their showers,’ she said. ‘It is really sad but we are all ok and all of our sentimental things were safe.’

Members of North Dartmoor Search and Rescue Team (NDSART) and Dartmoor Search and Rescue Team Tavistock were on standby at their headquarters in both towns over the weekend to respond to floods anywhere in the South West.

Okehampton fire crews were called out at 9.40am on Saturday morning to reports of a tree falling on a car on the A3079 Okehampton to Holsworthy road near Ashbury.

The crew made things safe and helped the police clear the fallen tree from the carriageway, with help from local greenkeepers with chainsaws and a telehandler.

The occupants of the car were uninjured.

Highways workers from Devon County Council were kept busy across the county clearing fallen trees, including one on the A3072 between Bow and North Tawton and the A386 at Meeth.

Storm Dennis caused more flooding incidents than those seen during Storm Ciara the previous weekend.

However, as Dave Stoneman from NDSART explained, there were more issues with the rivers flowing south off Dartmoor than the Okement rivers at Okehampton.

‘From what I understand the rain fell as it was predicted to do on the high ground on Dartmoor, into the River Teign and Dart, Plym, all those Dartmoor rivers, and it didn’t affect the tor or the Okement rivers so much. Although they did rise it wasn’t as much as the rivers elsewhere.’

Elsewhere, highways’ crews were out clearing trees, landslips and debris from roads, as well as clearing gullies and drains.

The rise in ground surface water caused the Peter Tavy Inn to close for the day on Tuesday as an inch of spring water covered the kitchen floor.

Owner Jo Wordingham said the incident was minor but the staff were ‘brilliant’ to keep going and were working in wellies while bailing out water.

Although the search and rescue teams on standby were not actually needed during the worst part of the storm, NDSART was called out on Monday morning to help Exmoor Search and Rescue Team and police search for a missing 88-year-old woman from Tiverton. They were stood down after conducting searches along the River Exe and its tributaries without finding her.

They also assisted the Tavistock search and rescue team and police at 1.30pm on Monday near Barnstaple who were looking for a 28-year-old man who was subsequently found by a police helicopter fit and well.

Several roads across the borough were impassable due to fallen trees and blocked drains after the weekend’s 48-hour deluge of rain.

Councillor Stuart Hughes, Devon County Council cabinet member for highway management, said: ‘Storm Dennis left a trail of devastation over the weekend, with a huge number of flooded roads, landslides and more trees down across the county. Our dedicated teams have been extremely busy working in hazardous conditions dealing with as many of these as possible.

‘Due to the extent of the damage it may take some time to get everything back to normal.’