Now the waters are subsiding, the extent of the damage done by the floods is becoming clearer. As these images from Keswick show, the picturesque riverside is strewn with mangled trees, dumped there when the river broke its banks. Keswick's bowling green, meanwhile, is now brown thanks to a thick layer of mud.

Image source, AFP

Image source, AFP

Image source, AFP

According to BBC Radio Cumbria, £300,000 has so far been donated to an appeal by the Cumbria Community Foundation, external to help flooding victims. 

The Met Office says Storm Desmond has broken two rainfall records. As well as the 24-hour record, it's also expected to set a new bar for the amount of rain falling in 48 hours.

There were 405mm of rain recorded at Thirlmere in the 38 hours to 08:00 GMT on 6 December.The Met Office currently doesn't have the full 48-hour data but expects that the total could be sightly higher than 405mm.

The previous record was 395.6mm. which fell at Seathwaite, Cumbria, on November 18 and 19 2009. 

The Environment Agency has increased its estimate of the total number of flooded homes in Cumbria and Lancashire to 5,200.

The new figure is based on direct reports and modelling of the impact of the flooding over the past few days.

Friends of the Earth said the record rainfall in Cumbria was "yet another wake-up call" for the government.

“Climate change is expected to make flooding more likely and more severe in the UK," said its energy campaigner Guy Shrubsole.

“Unfortunately UK policies are going in the wrong direction with ministers failing to invest adequately in flood defences and repeatedly undermining energy efficiency and clean renewable power."

He called for world leaders at the Paris climate summit to "ramp up efforts to cut the pollution that's super-charging our weather".  

Image source, AFP/Getty

Work is under way across many areas to clear flood debris, as seen here on this road in Keswick. 

Image source, AFP/Getty

Businesses are also counting the cost, with a man here shown placing flood-damaged goods outside a shop in Keswick.

Image source, EPA/Cumbria Police

Image source, EPA/Cumbria Police

These aerial pictures released by Cumbria Police show how badly areas of Carlisle have been affected by flooding.

The first image shows flood waters in Warwick Road, with the second also covering Victoria Place and Aglionby Street. 

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Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron has said questions must be asked about cuts to flood defence schemes.

Speaking from Kendal, Mr Farron said he was "very cautious" about pointing the finger. 

But he added: "The question we now need to ask ourselves is whether it was right to cancel some of the funding for flood defence schemes over the last few years." 

He said the last three governments bore some responsibility.  

Electricity North West says its engineers are "working hard" to restore power to the remaining customers in Cumbria and Lancaster who are still cut off. 

There are 2,657 homes in Cumbria currently without power and 300 in Lancaster and the surrounding areas.

They said: "Engineers are working in areas trying to access substations, including by boat, to try and repair the damage and restore power to the remaining customers. 

"More than 60 generators have been delivered to key sites and installed to restore power."

Electricity North West also gave this advice to those on a generator: 

A bit more information on that record rainfall at the weekend.

The new record was set at Honister Pass, in the Lake District, and is the equivalent of more than a month's worth of rain falling in just one day.

Norman Smith
Assistant political editor

BBC assistant political editor Norman Smith says that while there will be a review of the UK-wide flood defences to see how they might have coped, there will also be a "candid reflection" that there is a limit to what the government can do when faced with "unprecedented weather conditions".

While the existing flood defences were overwhelmed, the view from Number 10 is that they "didn't do badly" - they protected thousands of homes and bought time for emergency services to evacuate people. 

There is often a "blame game in Westminster", with government often accused of not doing enough or spending enough, but that has not happened here, he says.  

The Met Office confirms that Cumbria received 341.4mm of rainfall in the 24-hour period from 1830 GMT on Friday 4 December to 1830 GMT on Saturday 5.

This beats the previous record set at Seathwaite, Cumbria, of 316.4mm on 19 November 2009. 

More from the prime minister. He told reporters the government would help flood-stricken local authorities to cope financially.