A REPLACEMENT for a North-East footbridge which was washed away during Storm Desmond is set to open today.

The bridge over the River Wear, in Stanhope, County Durham, was swept away in the flooding which followed torrential rain in early December 2015.

At the time, David Dunn, from Crook, who took photographs of the scene said: “I think the river was reaching 15 feet at one point.

“I’ve never seen it like that before.”

Durham County Council, which is responsible for the maintenance of footbridges, subsequently designed and ordered a replacement.

Following consultation with local members, Stanhope Town Council and landowners, the highways structures team made arrangements for the new bridge to be installed.

The bridge was lifted into place on Monday, July 18, and opens to the public today.

John Reed, the council’s head of technical services, said: “We are delighted to be able to restore this vital link for the community, in time for the school holidays and the Stanhope Show in September.

“We would like to thank people for their patience since the bridge was washed away in Storm Desmond.”

County councillor for Weardale, John Shuttleworth, said: “This is a really positive step and it has come just at the right time, with tourist season in full swing and Stanhope Show coming up.

“It is the only bridge that crosses the river at that point so it is excellent news for walkers.”

Storm Desmond wreaked havoc across the North-East, North Yorkshire and Cumbria.

Further along the River Wear, in nearby Frosterley, in Weardale, a bridge was closed as a precautionary measure after the structure was deemed unsafe due to storm damage.

An inspection carried out in the wake of the storm found damage to the apron to the front of a main support column of the bridge.

It remained closed until January, to allow the high river levels to fall sufficiently for tree debris to be removed and for divers to inspect the damage.

More than 65,000 residents in the region were left without power after being battered by gale force winds and heavy rain, while emergency services were stretched to their limits rescuing residents and animals stranded in flood waters.

Lorries were blown over by the strong winds and trees fell, blocking roads.

Cumbria was so badly hit by Storm Desmond that it declared a ‘major incident’ and hundreds of residents were evacuated from their homes and three bridges in the county were washed away by the floods.

A 90-year-old man died in London after being blown into the side of a moving bus by a gust of wind.