WHEN Prince Andrew walked into Zoe Devine's butchers it would have been hard for him to imagine the devastation which greeted the town on Boxing Day.

Dressed in warm clothing and surrounded by bare counters and salvaged equipment, the owner of Devine Meats put on a brave face as the Duke of York visited her Tadcaster shop.

The sixth in line to the throne was visiting the stricken town as part of a tour of flood hit areas, and brought a much-needed boost to a place which has been through so much trauma in the last 13 days.

"It's very uplifting for a town that's on it's knees," explained Mrs Devine. "It gives people a lift in hard times."

"He was absolutely lovely and a pleasure.

"He asked us about the floods and how everybody has pulled together, and was genuinely interested about what was going on."

York Press:

Prince Andrew in Tadcaster

The Duke arrived in the west of Tadcaster to visit the flood-hit St Mary's Church and to catch his first glimpse of the town's lifeless bridge which has split the town in two and left residents on either side facing a 20-mile round trip to cross the River Wharfe.

However, their determination and spirit to overcome the worst of the floods and carry on with their lives struck a chord with The Duke.

"It has been a very difficult time but I get the sense from talking to people that the community has pulled together in a way that is really encouraging," he said.

"This bridge is going to be part of the problem for the next year until it is re-built and it will be great to see it re-built as quickly as possible."

Martin Raggett, owner of Allens Ironmongers, in Bridge Street, said the Duke's visit kept Tadcaster in the national picture.

He added: "This keeps the profile up and makes people aware that we are still here and things are still going on.

"We've still got bills to pay and need to stay open and take money."

Cllr Richard Sweeting, chairman of Selby District Council, accompanied Prince Andrew on his tour of Tadcaster.

"It's a real boost to see him," he added.

"He is concerned and spent a lot of time in the church because he was worried about the structure and furniture.

"He's very warm and down to earth."

York Press:

Prince Andrew with flood volunteers in York

From Tadcaster, the Duke travelled to York's council HQ where he was greeted by dozens of staff, volunteers, police and armed forces who helped the city cope with the devastating weather.

He thanked them for their hard work, and praised the community spirit which had drawn people together and inspired so many to help each other.

Flying over Yorkshire had shown just how much water there was in the county, he added.

Prince Andrew also praised the flood-hit businesses which had managed to get back up and running within just a few days, adding: "That's the message that I think is important - those parts of Yorkshire which were affected are now open for business."

Among the volunteers were university students, and York residents Graham Storey and Heather Bowser, who had spent days delivering clean-up kits to flooded homes and businesses around Fossgate, and packing food donated by Nestle for people flooded out of their homes.

Heather added: "I had been following the volunteer calls on Facebook and York is where I live and work so the sense of community called me in."

Soldiers from the 2nd battalion the Yorkshire Regiment were there, and spoke of being called back from Christmas leave and having a hundred troops ready to help with reassurance patrols, sandbagging and evacuations.