Flash flooding and gale force winds have wreaked havoc on the Isle of Wight with residents having to be rescued from their homes.

Torrential overnight rain saw roads, cars and properties under water in Ryde, Sandown and Shanklin.

Ryde was the worst affected after 70mm (3 inches) of rain fell overnight and Monktonmead Brook burst its banks.

A 14-month-old baby boy was among those rescued from his Ryde home by firefighters as his anxious parents passed him out of a window to safety.

Firefighters deployed high volume pumping equipment on properties as hundreds of sandbags were handed out to homeowners.

Some intrepid locals took to canoes to get around submerged roads.

The station had to close after the railway line was flooded and schools shut for the day.

Ryde’s inshore lifeboat was out of action for five hours after rain washed away its slipway.

Five metre high waves have been lashing the coastline at high tide.

Extraordinary pictures show how a JCB driver found himself trapped in his cab with his digger stranded at sea after being caught out by the tide.

The JCB had been left precariously parked on a low wooden platform on the beach after being used as part of multi-million repair work to Ryde pier.

When the driver returned and found his digger surrounded by the sea, he could not get it back to the shore.

The Met Office has issued a severe weather warning for the island.