Lydney in Gloucestershire, and Frampton Cotterell in South Gloucestershire were also among the worst hit areas in the West.

Mayor of Lydney, Tash Saunders, told BBC Radio Gloucestershire that Monday was a “a day of tears everywhere we went”.

“The devastation was much worse than we expected as the water receded. By the time I got into town the destruction was then more evident,” she said.

“We do still have houses underwater and the big clean-up mission continues.”

One of the biggest area of concern in the town was its small humpback bridge, that links one side of the town to the other.

Council highways teams were on site on Monday, but Ms Saunders said that they have not yet heard the results of the bridge inspection.

Alan Lancaster, who lives in Frampton Cotterell where the River Frome also spilled over, told BBC Radio Bristol earlier: “The river is still very high. It’s still higher directly outside my house than it has been in the last 20 years.”