Residents of the Leeman Road area of York feared the worst when water started gushing out of the sewers.

Manhole covers were dislodged and toilets came dangerously close to overflowing as water from the River Ouse forced its way into the sewerage system.

Streets more than 200m away from the river were soon under about half-a-metre of water - which contained traces of raw sewage - and a massive airfield fire tender was brought in from the Yorkshire Air Museum to pump the water away.

By 7pm last night the problem was under control as Yorkshire Water staff worked to pump out the water and "sand the manholes", and by this morning the area was dry.

Some residents of Lincoln Street were stranded in their own homes as water lapped doors at the front and back of their homes yesterday.

"I was supposed to be going to work this evening but I just can't get out of the house," said Louise Holliday.

The Yorkshire Air Museum responded to a call for help from Yorkshire Water and City of York Council by sending one of Britain's largest fire tenders - previously used in the 1982 Manchester air disaster - to the scene.

Dubbed the "Thunderbird" by Yorkshire Water workers, it arrived under police escort and was soon pumping 2,000 gallons a minute out of the sewers back into the Ouse.

"We are pleased to be able to use our fire tender for the benefit of York residents - we all need to do our bit," said museum director Ian Reed.

"We just hope we can do enough to keep the water out of people's houses."

City of York Council workers handed out sandbags to residents most at risk of flooding and Yorkshire Water set up an incident room nearby.

Spokesman Patrick Killgallon said the high river level meant that water was being pushed back through the sewerage system.

"It's getting into the system and coming through in low-lying areas," he said.

"We have isolated the sewers and are using the fire tender to remove the excess water."

He said there was "not much sewage" in the water and that it posed a "minimal health risk".

The Yorkshire Water spokeswoman praised the co-operation of the council, the fire brigade and the Environment Agency in bringing the situation under control.