IT came from nowhere and disappeared almost as fast as it arrived. But the devastation the water left in its wake will take months to clear.

About 30 days' worth of rain - around three inches - fell in just two hours, and turned beautiful landscapes and picturesque villages into mud-caked disaster areas.

That no one died in the savage flash floods that struck towns and villages on the edge of the North York Moors was nothing short of miraculous - and spoke volumes for the efforts of hundreds of firefighters, paramedics, police and rescue crews.

But the cost in terms of property and sheer misery was almost incalculable, with homes virtually destroyed, pets lost, livestock killed and belongings swept away by walls of filthy brown water.

Trees were uprooted, cars overturned, gravestones flattened as the unstoppable torrents burst through villages such as Hawnby and Thirlby.

Windows shattered, conservatories smashed and idyllic homes were left broken and empty save for the thick mud that coated everything the deluge touched.

In Helmsley, butcher and farmer Brian Thompson, 58, had just finished his tea when the water struck the home by the River Rye which his family has occupied for a century.

"We saw the river was going faster and moved some vehicles out, but 20 minutes later the house and shop were flooded."

Nearly 300 of his sheep were grazing just the other side of the river but, by the time anyone could reach them, the flock had disappeared.

A little later, two-thirds of them were found in nearby woods where they had been swept by the flood.

"We had just clipped them, otherwise they would have been dragged down by the weight of their wool, but there's still about 90 of them missing - and the insurers have told us they won't pay.

"There's no one to blame. It's just one of those things. In the end, it's just nature."

Nearby, in the grounds of Duncombe Park, about 7,000 bikers from the Motorcycle Action Group had been holding their annual rally.

When the storm hit, only 80 or so were left - but they were suddenly in a desperate race for their lives as water boiled across their campsite.

Bikes, cars and tents were swept away. If the storm had struck 15 hours earlier, thousands could have been caught up in the flood.

Rescue helicopters scrambled by the RAF winched several bikers to safety while others raced to higher ground.

One of those rescued by the airmen was Jean-Paul Roberts, 44, from Doncaster.

"I had ended up in the middle of the water after trying to rescue some bikes," he said.

"Some of the spotlights smashed on my head, but I managed to hang on to a loose wire and got myself on to a bridge. The power of the water was awesome."

Ronnie Glendinning and his wife were walking nearby when the river level shot up.

Using their mobile, they rang friends and screamed for them to get out of their tents. Mr Glendenning waded in to help and then dashed for high ground.

"I was running and it was racing up like a wall of water behind me," he said. "We managed to get our bikes - but we lost everything else."

They joined about 50 others evacuated to the stately home where Lord and Lady Feversham were "running around to everybody with cups of tea and coffee".

Many bikers were taken to Lady Lumley's School, in Pickering, to spend the night and returned the next morning to salvage what they could.

At Hawnby, Mary and Roy Griffiths fought to save the dogs in their boarding kennels, helped by other villagers.

Kennel worker Julie Barr said: "By the time I got there, all I could see was the aftermath. Mary was on the roof saying: 'We're losing dogs! We're losing dogs!'."

People climbed onto roofs to escape the wave, and one local man waded into the water to pull the couple from a sudden torrent after the dogs had been saved. Mrs Griffith was later airlifted to hospital in Northallerton with a suspected heart attack, where she is now stable.

RSPCA inspector Geoff Edmonds managed to battle his way through the next morning. He said: "The scene was complete devastation. It looked as if a hurricane had hit. The water had torn everything down. There were about 16 dogs and all had been saved but one - and we managed to round that one up.

"We're now looking for somewhere to house the animals until their owners pick them up."

Staff arrived at Rievaulx Abbey yesterday to find the shop, storerooms and much of the grounds ankle-deep in stinking mud.

"It's just heartbreaking," said site supervisor Louise Illingworth as she began to clear the mess.

"We don't know how long it's going to take - but at least the monument itself doesn't seem damaged, although the mud reached there as well."

In Thirlby, householder Sarah Harrison was left with thick mud through her home and back yard. "It took just seconds," she said.

At Sutton-under-Whitestonecliffe, homes near the river had been severely hit.

Husband and wife Graham and Rachel Lamond fled as a wave as high as their ground-floor windows swept along.

Mrs Lamond told the BBC: "We just had to watch as our family home floated away. All we could do was get out. We couldn't even get in the house to get anything."

Ryedale MP John Greenway was visibly shocked when he arrived in the area early yesterday to inspect the damage for himself.

"There's a lot of mud, but there's also a lot of broken hearts," he said.

"Thankfully, the rain has stopped and no one has lost their lives - but if we have to, we will ask the Government for help.

"One common feature of the flooding in this area is that it rained very hard in a few hours and there was nowhere for it to go. There is no flood plain and we'll have to look at whether we can do more.

"This is nature reminding us just what it can do."

And with roads and bridges damaged, it will be a long time before the area is back to normal.