Flood victims found out what steps they can take to prevent further devastation at a key conference in Carlisle.

A host of speakers and businesses have been discussing flood prevention at the first Cumbria Flood Expo, held at Carlisle Racecourse.

Firms providing sandbags and floodgates were on hand to consult with the victims of Storm Desmond, while information was also provided in a series of seminars.

The conference opened yesterday and is also taking place today, with hundreds of people expected to attend.

Martyn Dyer-Smith, who lives on Petteril Street, was forced for his home for 11 months, only returning to live upstairs during key stages of building work.

He told The Cumberland News: "We've taken steps to make the house flood resilience, but there are a few gaps in what we're doing that need filling in, which is why I came along."

Mr Dyer-Smith said he was impressed with a talk given by Mary Dhonau, of the Know Your Flood Risk Campaign and Property Care Association Flood Protection Group.

He said: "She spoke about having a flood plan, which I think is very important. That's exactly what we did and we stuck to it."

The expo was organised by Kerryanne Wilde, founder of the Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) UK.

She said: "The feedback we've had from flood victims is that they didn't know what was available. We're giving them an opportunity to find out."