A huge clean-up operation is underway today after flash floods caused chaos - with roads and schools closed.

Debris and damage is being cleared following a dramatic night that saw people battling to stop floodwaters from getting into their homes.

People also had to be rescued from cars engulged by water with an 85-year-old man scrambling to safety after his car as trapped at Waverton, near Wigton – prompting pleas for drivers not to risk going through dangerous floodwaters.

Firefighters across the county were deluged by calls, with 208 flooding-related calls between 5pm yesterday and 7am today.

That led to them responding to 77 incidents. Police also dealt with a huge volume of calls.

About 40mm of rain fell within about four hours yesterday – and more wet and windy weather is being forecast for the weekend. The Environment Agency, which described last night’s conditions as “horrendous”, is expected to issue flood alerts for every river in Cumbria today.

Drains and small waterways were unable to cope with the huge pressure they were under, leading standing water, treacherous driving conditions and pockets of localised flooding at places including Kingmoor Road in Carlisle last night.

Parts of Rickerby Park were under water today, with the A595 closed from Thursby to Cockermouth this morning for Highways England to make the road safely passable. The coastal road between Maryport and Allonby was also closed.

Trains between Workington and Carlisle have been replaced by buses because of a landslip near Wigton.

Wigton was one of the worst affected areas last night, with Station Road submerged after Wiza Beck burst its banks.

Water flooded the town’s fire station adding to an already hectic night for firefighters who were responding to emergencies.

Crew Manager Alisdair Guthery said: “We were from incident to the next incident and trying to protect our own station.

“It has come up really fast this year and I think it’s caught everyone unaware. There’s been that much rain over the last fortnight the water’s got nowhere to go and we’re paying for it at the moment.”

Peter Graham, 55, has lived in Station Road since 2002 and has seen the beck flood 10 times. He built a wall around his property and installed a flood gate. “If not [for that] I would have been flooded all the time,” he said

A tarmac flood ramp built in 2013 at Miller Park, a business park off Station Road which is prone to flooding, was tested for the first time.

Owner Michael Miller said: “It’s worked admirably. All the properties are fully safe and we’re delighted.”

Both the A595 and the A596 were severely hit, with sections near the Northside roundabout, Flimby and Aspatria all suffering.

Aspatria residents blocked up their doorways with sandbags, with the water level lapping the front of their properties. There were similar scenes in Flimby, Maryport and parts of Workington.

Carlisle firefighters were deployed across the north and west of the county to help with the emergency response.

Steve Sanderson, a firefighter at the Carlisle East station, said: “We got a call to go out to Broughton Moor near Workington, we were also out at Wigton and at Little Orton.

“We were at a farm at Little Orton making sure some cows in a shed did not drown. We were pumping out as much as we could and we created a barrier of silage to stop water going into the shed. That was about 6.15pm last night and we were there about 40 minutes.

“Then we got a call to go to Broughton Moor but we didn't get that far because another engine got to the scene before us. There were reports that a woman and a child were stuck in a car with flood water up to the window.”

The Met Office has issued yellow warnings of both wind and rain which are expected to last almost steadily until 6am on Sunday.

Meanwhile flood warnings and alerts, issued by the environment agency, remain in place around the county as heavy and persistent rain is forecast again from tomorrow morning into Sunday.

A Met Office spokesman said: “Rainfall totals of 30mm to 50mm are expected quite widely within the warning area, with 80mm or more possible over higher ground in the west.

“Indeed there is a risk that parts of Cumbria could see in excess of 100mm.”

Gusts of wind of up to 55mph are also predicted.