Communities across North Yorkshire have been praised for helping neighbours and clearing debris following two major storms over the weekend.
Storms Austen and Boelo brought heavy rain, strong winds and the first amber weather warning of the autumn, causing flooding, fallen trees and power outages across the county.
Roads throughout North Yorkshire were left covered in debris.
Emergency services, council teams and utility providers worked together throughout the weekend, dealing with more than 1,500 calls for help and assistance.
North Yorkshire Council's highways teams responded to almost 200 requests for help between Friday and Monday morning, including reports of fallen trees blocking roads and requests for sandbags.
Scarborough was particularly badly affected on Friday evening, when more than three inches of rain fell in just one hour, overwhelming drainage systems and flooding residential streets.
Several vehicles were also left stranded in flood water.
The response was coordinated through the North Yorkshire Local Resilience Forum, which brings together emergency services, local authorities and other organisations.
Matt Robinson, Chief Resilience Officer for the forum, praised residents and farmers who helped during the storms.
He said:
“We are fortunate to have a strong community spirit in York and North Yorkshire, and we are very grateful to all those who looked out for anyone close to them who may have needed an extra bit of help over the weekend.
“We also know that the farming community helped clear roads of debris assisting highways teams to keep routes open or reopen them as quickly as possible and we want to say thank you to them.
“On a very practical level having key partners working closely like this allows the best possible use of intelligence and information sharing so that we can keep people safe.”
Emergency services were also kept busy throughout the weekend.
North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service attended 32 weather-related incidents, including 12 flooded properties, 14 dangerous structures and two incidents involving people trapped in vehicles in flood water.
North Yorkshire Police received 758 emergency calls and 1,314 non-emergency calls across Saturday and Sunday, with 1,322 incidents recorded.
The response also involved identifying vulnerable residents affected by power cuts.
Information from Northern Powergrid was cross-referenced with council social care records to help prioritise welfare checks for those most in need.
Deputy Chief Fire Officer Garry Mackay urged residents to remain cautious, with further rainfall forecast.
He said:
“This weekend was a real example of partners working together, both to prepare for the storms and to respond when communities needed us.
“Our crews had a busy weekend, attending more than 30 weather-related incidents, and I’d like to thank everyone involved in the response.
“Although the storms have passed, further rain is forecast this week, so please continue to take care.
"If you come across flood water, don’t attempt to drive through it.
"Turn around and find a safer route.”
North Yorkshire Police Superintendent Andy Nunns said the coordinated response had helped essential services continue operating despite the disruption.
He thanked emergency services, council staff, utility providers and volunteers for their efforts throughout the weekend.
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