Huge pumps have been brought in a desperate attempt to clear the floods but many families have found that hardly anything can be saved.

The entire contents of fridges, electricals, sofas, crucial papers and precious possessions have all been destroyed.

Mother-of-five Tracey Birch pulled on waders yesterday to fight her way through the brown water and step inside her home for the first time since the floods.

She had moved her most treasured belongings upstairs before last week's floods, then brought them back downstairs - only to do it all again on Monday.

"I put everything upstairs again and hoped we could sit it out because I thought the worse case scenario was that the water would be about four feet deep," Tracey said.

"But then it kept creeping up and up so we had to go. When we came back the next day we weren't allowed in."

Tracey only braved the waters yesterday to get some toys for her youngest son Jack, aged four, in a bid to keep things as normal as possible for him.

And she is bravely refusing to let the awful situation break her spirit. "At the end of the day it is just bricks and mortar and my children are safe," she said.

Valerie Ripley was born and bred in Catcliffe but now at the age of 68 says she has never witnessed anything like the destruction that swept through this week.

"This is the worst we have ever had it. It was coming down the banking and everything was a complete lake.

"Even though I was born here I saw water come up places like nothing before. I just can't believe it."

Valerie said the water did not just rush in from the river, it was pouring up through drains unable to deal with the volume.

Along with other people in the village she has been doing what she can to protect her own property as well as looking after neighbours.

"This will take some getting over - it was like an octopus when the water came," the grandmother said.

Vera Caster has yet to see the wreck which is her home as the 82-year-old has been too ill to return home since she was evacuated.

She has been staying with relatives ever since but her family visited her home yesterday to pick up a few vital things.

Her daughter-in-law Katherine Caster said: "We just came down to get her some clothes and see what we could salvage but it is all just gone."

Mick Walker brought his house overlooking the river five years ago and was horrified to see it rushing closer.

Like thousands across South Yorkshire he has been unable get to work but the site foreman has praised the village's community spirit.

"I think people here tend to help one another out especially when there are so many who were evacuated," the 60-year-old said.