Dramatic footage has emerged of a village in Cornwall being battered by flooding, with water filling homes and properties being evacuated.
Cornwall Fire Service warned people to stay away from the village of Coverack on the westerly Lizard Peninsula after “major flooding”.
The coastguard said two people trapped in a house had been airlifted to safety, but four remained in the building. Cornwall Council later confirmed everyone had been rescued and there were no casualties.
The Mullion station of Cornwall Fire Service posted an incredible clip of the rescue of an elderly couple.
The authority said around 50 homes were affected by flooding as 15 fire engines were sent to the scene.
Other reports stated an elderly woman had to be rescued through a window.
The BBC reported a “four foot torrent” swept through the village as the storm hit on Tuesday afternoon.
The extreme weather struck across the West Country, a region which has a long history of being affected by flooding when steep-sided valleys face downpours.
Most notable was the Boscastle flooding in 2004, which destroyed more than 100 homes and businesses.
Coverack resident Chloe Marsland told ITV News the flooding was “like Boscastle all over again”. She said:
“There is no business or house not been affected. It’s absolutely harrowing. The house opposite me filled with water really quickly.”
Cornwall Fire Service said its crews responded to “multiple flooding-related incidents” in the Coverack area.
Karla Wainwright, who works at the Paris Hotel, told BBC News:
“There were hailstones as big as 50p pieces and a lot of small panes in our windows are broken.
“Once (the storm) cleared off then we could see a massive flood of water coming down the main way into Coverack.”
The fast-moving flood has swamped both access roads with the main road, the B3294, being broken apart and chunks of the road being swept over the seafront.
Gloria Knight tweeted a photo of garden after the storm, which was covered in debris, saying: “It’s awful. Here’s what remains of my garden. Most of which last seen heading out in the Channel.”