AS darkness fell across the western world on Tuesday September 11, television screens in millions of living rooms replayed the horrifying images of a nightmare made real in New York. Nations across the globe held their breath as first the world stood still - and then lurched towards the precipice of war.

But, as well as thousands of lives, the terrorists stole the headlines - and that means rural communities across Britain, torn apart by another enemy, are having to fight even harder to be heard.

A few months ago, pictures of burning animal carcasses dominated the front pages of every newspaper in the country. Today, foot-and-mouth disease has been all but forgotten. We have all watched the slaughter; we have all seen empty fields. There are only sporadic reports of new cases and the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) is talking about a recovery programme. But for some farmers, even those hit in the early stages of the epidemic, it is proving hard to move on.

William Lambert and his wife Claire, who farm in Wensleydale, were the first in North Yorkshire to have an outbreak of foot-and-mouth confirmed on their land. The disease hit the area in March and, for the Lamberts, the timing could not have been worse. They had invested heavily over the four previous years and their business plan relied on a return this spring. Instead, after generations of careful breeding, their cattle and sheep were slaughtered in a few hours.

Today, they can still recall the shock and isolation they felt - underlined by the sight of their new cattle shed, which should be redolent with the musty smell of animals bedded down on straw, standing empty and as clean as the day it was built.

Six months on, the only creatures to be seen at Raygill House Farm, a few miles east of Hawes, are the jackdaws riding the autumn winds. "I can't see us getting any more stock until the new year at the earliest," says Mr Lambert. "If we go by what we were told in the spring, then the winter is the time of year when the disease is most likely to spread. There was a case reported recently no more than 12 miles from here and, if foot-and-mouth is an airborne virus, than we could still be at risk.

"Defra reckons, in normal conditions, the disease may only be able to travel a few hundred yards - but what if there are winds like the ones we have had this week? I would not be happy about restocking until foot-and-mouth has been completely eradicated."

The Lamberts also say they cannot replace all the animals culled in the spring as the much-vaunted compensation, envied by many in the tourism trade, was not enough. "We were among the farmers paid compensation in the first few weeks, which ended up being as little as half what others received at the height of the crisis," says Mrs Lambert.

"Defra told us it was going to reconsider our claim, but that seems to have been forgotten since Labour won the election. We have written to Agriculture Minister, Elliot Morley, and to Secretary of State, Margaret Beckett, but have not received a single reply," she adds.

The ministry has also decided North Yorkshire farmers who wish to restock can only buy from within the county borders. But, with so many animals culled, it is a sellers' market, with prices in the area driven unrealistically high by the shortage of quality livestock to chose from. "This time, we will start with cattle but it will be far better to wait until the ministry changes the restrictions again," says Mr Lambert. But even waiting has its risks. And, having had his livelihood taken away with no prospect of an immediate replacement, he has been forced to look at other ways of earning a living.

"I have some lifting machinery, which has been useful during the culls, so I've been working on other farms with Defra as well as doing odd jobs for others," he says. "There is no support network for farmers so you just have to do what you can to keep your head above water - but, with winter coming, it is going to get more difficult as there are fewer things for us to do."

Here, then, on just one farm of thousands across the North-East and North Yorkshire, there is no sense of closure, no moving on. The National Farmers' Union adds that even those with livestock left are nonetheless shackled by the restrictions imposed to stop foot-and-mouth spreading.

"Some are even looking with envy at those who had their animals culled," says NFU regional spokesman, Rob Simpson. "Those who still have their livestock face a daily battle with regulations which govern their movement. Also, if they want to buy animals, prices are inflated and, when they come to sell, prices are down. For example, the ban on exports means lamb is selling for £1.40 a kilo in the UK but, with British products off the market abroad, shortages have driven prices there to around £4 a kilo."

And, although Defra and the rural development agencies may be speaking of a recovery programme, Mr Simpson admits the coming months and years may witness more of a reorganisation of the agricultural industry.

"There will be farmers who use the disruption caused by foot-and-mouth disease to look at things differently. Some are going to want to avoid risks now they have realised they are vulnerable to so many variables, and may consider other options. They may marry their farming with tourism, leisure or niche markets, or try new crops. Others may hand over to younger sons with more energy for change, or simply leave farming altogether - but what we have to do is try to ensure there are some farmers left after the disease is finally stamped out."

Mr and Mrs Lambert hope to be among them. Looking a few years ahead, they hope to be rearing cattle again, this time with an emphasis on dairy cows. But, for now, the foot-and-mouth epidemic is still as real as it ever was, even though they accept it is no longer front page news.

"What happened in America put things in perspective: we may have lost our livestock but at least we still have our family," says Mrs Lambert. However, they remain among thousands across the country who know from personal experience that, regardless of events across the Atlantic, the crisis closer to home is not over yet.

"Farming in this country is efficient and advanced and we know we can produce what people want," says Mr Lambert. "Once foot-and-mouth is over, all we ask is that we are allowed to compete on a level playing field with the rest of Europe, and the same laws that apply here apply across the rest of the continent."

Read more about foot-and-mouth here.