AN ELDERLY couple were rescued from their vehicle after it became stranded in flood water at the weekend.

Tyne and Wear Fire Service came to the couple's aid when their car got caught in a ford near Bywell on Sunday as Storm Ciara battered the North-East.

Fire and rescue crews were kept busy throughout the storms as roads were flooded and rivers broke their banks after a weekend of heavy rain.

The River Rede at Otterburn, West Woodburn and Redesmouth, the River South Tyne at Haydon Bridge and Haltwhistle and the River Tyne at Prudhoe at Well Bank in Corbridge all burst their banks on Sunday.

Fire crews from Northumberland and Tyne and Wear were called out to incidents at Otterburn, Wark, Hexham, Allendale, Corbridge and Prudhoe.

There were dramatic scenes on Haydon Bridge's two bridges, with strong winds and a swollen River South Tyne making its way into the underpass at the west end of the New Bridge.

The Met Office issued national severe weather warnings for strong winds and heavy rain brought by Storm Ciara throughout the weekend, including an amber warning for much of England and Wales for Sunday.