Part of a bridge submerged by a swollen river on a Capel Curig farm

Coastguards were forced to scramble a helicopter to rescue three people in a lorry stranded in five feet of rising water as floods continue to disrupt life in many parts of Wales.

Two motorists and the breakdown rescue vehicle driver - stranded in Trefriw outside the Conwy town of Llanrwst - were winched to safety on Tuesday afternoon by a rescue helicopter from RAF Valley.

Watch manager Geoff Lunt said all three people had to climb on board the roof of the vehicle.

He said: "They had reported that the water had reached the dashboard of the vehicle before they went onto the roof.

"They are all reported as being unharmed despite one of the Llandudno coastguards describing the flooding as the worst he has seen in the area."

The Environment Agency - which issued 64 flood watches and 25 flood warnings across Wales - has issued its first severe flood warning of the day on the river Rhondda at Ferndale, Treherbert, Pentre and Porth.

Sandbags proved to be no defence against torrential rain

An agency spokesman said that "a further band of heavy rain is expected to last for most of Wednesday giving a repeat of Tuesday's rainfall event".

Meanwhile, several houses in the Conwy are continuing to mop up after this morning's floods - Trefriw and Llanrwst are cut off, five schools have been closed and a main road shut because of a landslide in neighbouring Gwynedd.

In Capel Curig, records show that five inches of rain had fallen since 2000 GMT yesterday.

People living in Llanrwst have described the flooding as the worst they had ever seen.

A village pub has become a makeshift rescue centre for residents in the nearby village of Trefriw as their homes have been flooded and all routes in and out the area are impassable.

At another pub in Llanrwst, manager Peter Mayalls says he was deluged with over two feet of water despite laying a barrier sandbags.

Emyr Jones, who lives nearby, said: "There is traffic chaos as the centre of town is closed, and cars are being redirected.

Llanrwst remain cut off with all routes in an out closed

"The water is streaming off the mountains and spouting out of manholes. And it is still raining hard.

"It is the worst it has been in at least 23 years."

Moving south, the towns of Betws y Coed and Dolwyddelan were also hit and a culvert in the centre of the village of Dyffryn Ardudwy - between Barmouth and Harlech - overflowed into the road and some properties.

Gwynedd Council said about 15 tonnes of scree was on the road on the A4086 road at Nant Peris, which was closed due to a small landslide at Pont Cromlech. A number of other roads in the county have also been shut.

Trains have not escaped the disruption with the Conwy Valley line closed between Blaenau Ffestiniog and Llandudno Junction, as well as the Cambrian Line between Machynlleth and Newtown.

Meanwhile, farmland areas of west Wales have been flooded, with water on some football pitches rising halfway up the goalposts.

In mid Wales, Powys County Council said heavy rain brought localised risk of flooding on roads.

For up-to-date information, call the Floodline on 0845 988 1188.