Helicopters were scrambled last night to pluck hundreds of residents from the Cumbrian town of Cockermouth, after it bore the brunt of the bad weather battering the country.

Record rainfall unleashed floods across the UK, with northwest England worst affected. Last night the RAF and Fire Services were trying to evacuate residents who had been cut off by floodwaters. Volunteer lifeboat teams were working through the night, ferrying people to safety, along the main shopping street and town square which were submerged by the fast-flowing currents.

People were winched out of their homes as tree trunks floated past submerged shops, pubs and tourist signs pointing to Wordsworth’s house. In some cases, the tops of telephone boxes were barely visible as the waters continued to rise around them.

Chief Superintendent Steve Johnson, of Cumbria Police, said: “I would like to say it has reached its peak, but I cannot. We are trying to get to all those houses that are in trouble where people are trapped and to get them to the reception centres.”

A number of volunteer RNLI lifeboat teams were dispatched to assist.RNLI Divisional Inspector North Andy Clift said: “Our teams train to ensure we can respond to the conditions faced with swift water flooding, which are different to the conditions our volunteers usually face at sea.”

About 1,100 homes were left without electricity in the Cockermouth area as well as 349 in Keswick.

Parts of Cumbria had more than a month’s worth of rain in 48 hours, as did areas in Scotland. The Environment Agency said its Floodline service had received more than 7,000 calls over a 24-hour period.

Hundreds of people, many of them elderly, were left seeking shelter at emergency rescue centres. Kevin Curran, general manager of the Skiddaw Hotel in Keswick, said that about 30 people had been given shelter there. “People are upset, especially some of the elderly ones — it is not the first time for a lot of them.”

Several areas recorded record rainfall for November. Gale-force winds are expected and the Met Office has issued 30 flood warnings and more than 70 flood watch alerts.

The Mayor of Keswick, Andrew Lysser, said homes had been evacuated after the Greta burst its banks yesterday morning, with the level 5ft higher than normal. He said: “It is raining now, with another ten hours of rain forecast.”

Up to 4ins of rain is expected to have fallen over parts of Cumbria, western Scotland and North Wales by midday today, the Met Office said.

A family in Leeds had a narrow escape after a 70ft tree crashed through their conservatory, just missing the bedroom of Kairo Colley, 7. His father, Mori Colley, said: “If the tree had fallen to the right instead of left it would have hit Kairo’s bedroom.”

In Scotland, there were flood warnings at the River Tweed, Ettrick Water, Yarrow Water and Teviot Water. About 150 homes and businesses in Hawick, in the Borders, were facing evacuation last night overflowed.

In Wales, dozens of roads were impassable last night and a number of bridges were closed to vehicles. The fire service said it had rescued people trapped in cars in Bala, Gwynedd.

Roads have also been closed and homes are at risk across Lancashire. Dozens of schools have been closed.

Among the many events that have been cancelled due to bad weather was the World’s Biggest Liar Competition, scheduled to take place in Santon Bridge, near Whitehaven, Cumbria Organisers said that when they tried to tell people the event was cancelled, no one would believe them.