Residents and businesses are picking up the pieces after Teignbridge was battered by extreme weather conditions for four days from Thursday (November 21) to Sunday (November 24).

Snow and icy conditions, which caused the closure of many schools and roads on Thursday, were swiftly followed by storm-force winds, torrential rain and flooding as Storm Bert unleashed its fury.

The Met Office issued a yellow weather warning for snow from 5am on Thursday until 3pm. The white stuff caused disruption for drivers with multiple road closures. Meanwhile, school children were treated to a day off as more than 50 schools across Devon closed due to the wintry conditions.

As milder air came in and began to melt the snow, the Met Office issued another yellow weather warning, this time for wind and rain, as Storm Bert rolled in on Saturday morning and raged all weekend.

High winds toppled trees, felled power lines and damaged property. The 48 hours of heavy rain over the weekend, falling onto ground already saturated by the melting snow, swelled watercourses and led to flooding as drains were overwhelmed and several rivers, including the River Teign, burst their banks.

The Environment Agency reported that the River Teign at Chudleigh reached 3.57 metres at 11.30am on Sunday (November 24), twice its usual water level. The previous highest level of 3.43 metres was recorded in December 2013.

The rising water cut off the village of Teigngrace, stranding drivers near the village. Key routes through Teignbridge were also badly affected. The A38 resembled a lake near Drum Bridges and was closed for near Chudleigh Knighton leading to long traffic queues. In Newton Abbot, flooding at Kingsteignton caused more tailbacks as Newton Road and Kingsteignton Road were closed.

Highways teams worked around the clock to deal with hundreds of issues across Devon’s road network. Up to 30 teams, including highways emergency response crews, tree surgeons and other specialists, worked flat out to respond to problems.

‘Saturday saw a steady stream of callouts for fallen trees, flooding and other wind damage such as utility infrastructure and road signs,’ a Devon County Council spokesperson said. ‘Teams in gully wagons patrolled the network clearing gully and drainage blockages while gritter drivers, who were on standby, were on hand to provide extra support,’ the spokesperson added.

Firefighters were also busy as they helped motorists who had got stuck in floodwater and dealt with several road traffic collisions.

Devon County Council brought in extra staff to man its Network Operations Control Centre which received around 600 calls leading to more than 250 emergency call outs across the weekend.

By Monday, most of the main road network was open, however, high-water levels were still causing issues in areas such as Manaton, Starcross, Avonwick, the Teigngrace Causeway, Liverton and the Dartington to Buckfastleigh Road, A384.

Many residents and businesses began the week clearing up the damage. In Newton Abbot, The Lodge Skate Park launched a GoFundMe page to help pay for water pumps to remove the floodwater, dehumidifiers and cleaning supplies after suffering its ‘worst flooding in ten years’.

See page 10 for pictures.