Winkworth’s premises in Market Street, Dartmouth were flooded out last week when the central heating boiler two floors above lost all its water. Richard Blake entered his estate agent’s offices to find the rear of the premises dripping and ankle deep with water.

Dehumidifiers and heaters were brought in after the carpets were removed and office furniture brought to the centre of the offices. Some files, which were to go to archive storage in Townstal, were soaked and may be damaged beyond recovery but Winkworth’s systems are Internet-based and the business has been able to carry on.

Richard Blake said: “It’s caused disruption but we’re still trading and customers can still call or email. Actually we received an offer on a property this morning.

“Our data is Cloud-based, so while it is inconvenient, it is not disastrous.”