THE flood waters may be receding from York for now – but across the city hundreds of people remain in evacuation centres and sleeping on friends’ and relatives’ sofas.

Volunteer projects have popped up across York to help the many stricken families and residents who fled their homes from rising flood waters, as well as to help feed the many rescue workers and other volunteers who have poured into the town from across the country to help.

One project set up on Facebook by a group of York residents, York Floods 2015 Help for the Affected was set up on Saturday night, as the need for help began immediately as soon as the floods began to hit homes on Boxing Day.

By Monday morning New Earswick Methodist Church had loaned the project its hall to collect goods donated to the relief effort.

One of the volunteers who helped set up the project, Halli-Paige Riley, from New Earswick said they needed everything from food to bedding and toiletries, to help people in rescue centres and camping out in relatives homes.

She said they had been contacted by one household in York which was providing refuge to 22 people in a three-bedroomed property.

“They had nowhere to go,” she said.

“They texted us to say they had nothing. They were trying to get a rescue boat to see if they could collect some medication for someone who has Type I diabetes. A girl had left her insulin behind and she’s only eight.”

Set up by Chelle Holmes, Donna Riley, Gill Bell, Halli-Paige Riley, Susan Robinson and Dawn Murray, they set about making sandwiches for those helping with the rescue efforts and people who had fled to the evacuation centres, but it soon snowballed into a big relief effort.

Gill Bell said the River Foss rose so quickly on Boxing Day, that many people had to flee with very little.

She said they began by making sandwiches for people in three evacuation centres at Foxwood, Archbishop Holgate School and Energise gym, and also distributed food to the many helpers who piled in to York to help with the rescue.

She said after an appeal on social media, people began turning up to help on Monday morning with donations and offers of help.

Supermarkets throughout the town, including Sainsbury’s, Morrisons and Asda and Booker’s cash and carry have been donating food and other items to rescue workers, volunteers and families who have fled with nothing.

The project workers have made up emergency bags containing toiletries, food and household cleaning products to give to each person identified in need.

They said they were supplying food to evacuation centres, volunteers and supplies to homes where people had fled to.

But assessing the scale of need has been tricky, with many people having fled homes to stay with relatives.

Halli-Paige Riley said some people were also returning to flooded homes following reports that the homes and sheds of flood-victims were being targeted flood victims in Huntington Road and elsewhere in York.

In one section of the church, toys had been collected for a nursery on Walmgate which had been flooded, while in another, bedding was piled up for the floods’ many hidden victims who were camping out on friends and relatives’ sofas. One volunteer said shortly after the floods she saw about 30 elderly residents who had been evacuated from their home sat in an empty room in shock on chairs and trying to lie down and sleep.

Gill Bell said: “There are a lot of people in temporary accommodation – they’re accommodated but cramped.

“There are lots of people who have accommodation but on people’s sofas. We’ve just sent out pillows, blankets and other bedding to a family of five who have had to move out to a relative’s home.”

Hundreds of volunteers have also travelled in to the city. Within eight hours of the flood happening, Islamic Relief UK and volunteers from York Mosque had bagged 80 tonnes of sand for flood defences in the town. Volunteers from mosques in Northern England, including Newcastle and Batley also travelled to York and helped fill sandbags in a 24-hour operation, as well help with other emergency aid.

Volunteers with mountain rescue groups as far afield as Exmoor, Wales, Tavistock and Plymouth joined local search and rescue groups in getting people to safety.

The project has collection points across the city, which include The Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Saints in Acomb, Bell Farm Social Hall and Heworth Church Hall, but many have reached their capacity for storing donations and people should check for updates on their Facebook page at: York Floods 2015 Help for the Affected.

The project is still looking for volunteer drivers to take the items out to individual homes and evacuation centres and people to get in contact with them and let them know what they needed. She said they were also likely to need more cleaning products over the coming days as people began to return home.

Anyone who can help should contact Gill Bell on 07549 825320.