THE region was yesterday counting the cost of the storms that brought chaos to the North-East and North Yorkshire at the weekend.

Insurers predict the damage could run into tens of millions of pounds, but for people caught up in the violent storms, the consequences could have been much worse.

Emergency services, mountain rescue teams and two RAF helicopters were dispatched to some of the worst-hit areas, plucking several people to safety from the raging waters.

The Environment Agency said a month's worth of rain, 70mm, fell in three hours, 27mm of it falling in 15 minutes.

In County Durham, Newton Aycliffe also suffered flooding, and several motorists became stranded on the A167.

Richard Day was at home with five-year-old daughter Hannah when hailstones fell during the storm.

"They were massive chunks of ice, the size of marbles," he said. "Hannah was frightened by the noise, they were banging off the windows.

"When we looked afterwards, there were dents in the cars, as if someone had been at it with an airgun.

"I've never seen anything like it, I'm sure someone would have been hurt if they were out in it."

Several streets in Chester-le-Street, County Durham, were flooded, and Horner's pub in Front Street was forced to close on Sunday evening.

Lee Slater, the pub's assistant manager, said the whole street was engulfed in water, and up to six inches of water collected in the cellar and in the bar area.

In Newcastle, an elderly couple - thought to be in their 70s - were rescued from their car after they became trapped in flooded Walkergate.

Drinkers in the nearby Railway Inn raced to their rescue after the car was left almost submerged.

Landlord Ted Laughlin said: "The man thought he might have been able to get through the water in his car, but when he got up to the edge, he tried to get it in reverse and the car stalled.

"The water rose so quickly it was unreal."

On Teesside, a Star Wars fan lost his collection of toys and memorabilia worth more than £20,000 when lightning struck his roof.

Graham Duck returned from a Father's Day meal with his two children to find the fierce storms which devastated North Yorkshire had taken their toll on his home in nearby Loftus, east Cleveland.

The 41-year-old, of Victoria Terrace, said his collection of toys was irreplaceable and "priceless".

He added: "The whole of the chimney stack where it hit is cracked and damaged.

"It hit the stack at first and then travelled down the wall inside and set fire to the loft.

"It's blown out some of the walls and ceiling in the main bedroom, but everything caught fire in the loft."

Cleveland Fire Brigade said they took 90 minutes to put out the blaze, which started at 6pm.

A spokeswoman said the loft was destroyed by the fire, and seven rooms were damaged by smoke.

She said no one was injured and no rescue was needed.

A North Yorkshire Police spokesman said 32 properties were flooded. The cause of the flooding is being investigated and the Environment Agency has asked people to fill in questionnaires on the floods.

A major clean-up is continuing in Helmsley, North Yorkshire, where floodwaters coursed through the streets, cutting it off and closing the A170 and the B1257.

Officers said a bridge into the town is in a "perilous" state, and confirmed another bridge in nearby Hawnby was washed away by the floods, which peaked at 1.37am.

A police spokesman said: "Last night's flash floods were unexpected, sudden and wide-ranging.

"Hawnby is not accessible to vehicles, but people can walk in and out. They have no power and no tap water, but I understand bottled water is being taken in."

Emergency crews airlifted an elderly woman from Hawnby to Friarage Hospital, in Northallerton, after she suffered a suspected heart attack.

Firefighters later began to pump away the floodwaters and, in Helmsley, street cleaners joined efforts to move debris.

A home in Sutton-under-Whitestonecliffe, North Yorkshire, was devastated by the floods, and the family's two Vauxhall Astra and Volvo cars and two small sailing boats were washed away.

Graham Lamond, 45, who lives with wife Rachel, 43, and children Amy, 14, and Alastair, 12, said they could only look on helplessly as the water rose.

"The water rose to a few inches and people were really concerned about the state of their homes," he said. "Then, suddenly, there was a wall of water rolling straight at us about 5ft high. All we could do was run.

"Looking around the village this morning, it is in a real mess, it's going to take a long, long time to put this right."

At the Farmyard Party motorbike fair, at Duncombe Park, near Helmsley, several people had to be rescued by helicopter after the site was engulfed by a torrent of water.

Paul Kelsey, from Harrogate, described how portable cabins, marquees and caravans were swept away.

"Two airlifts saved seven of my mates. One was stuck up a tree and the others were just struggling," he said.

"At first, we dived in to try to get as much of our stuff as possible but the waters, they just kept coming."

There is some good news for the region.

Weathermen said last night that no significant rainfall is expected for several days.

Malcolm Tarling, a spokesman for the Association of British Insurers, said: "While it's too early yet to know exactly how much the damage bill will be, it is certain to run into tens of millions of pounds.

"Insurers have been braced for these floods, it's not something unexpected.

"Isn't this the way that all British heatwaves end - with a downpour?''

Elliot Morley, minister for flood defence, praised the work to combat the floods.

"It's clearly been traumatic for those affected," he said.