Police and paramedics have been praised for their heroics during the Boxing Day floods.

Greater Manchester Police scrambled hundreds of officers to the worst-hit areas in Rochdale, Littleborough and Salford as the rivers Roch and Irwell burst their banks.

They evacuated hundreds of householders, in some cases wading through floodwater to carry people to safety, as well checking on the vulnerable and helping home-owners salvage what they could.

Officers who had been tasked to work around the Etihad for Manchester City’s home game against Sunderland were scrambled to flood-hit areas.

A team of 20 volunteer special constables also helped out.

(Image: Gary Louth)

Greater Manchester’s firefighters have already been praised for saving around 1,000 flooding victims in just 20 hours.

M.E.N. readers posted messages on our Facebook page praising all the emergency services.

Anna de Botte wrote: “Fantastic individuals, these other emergency services are the real heroes.”

Pictures: Cleaning up after the floods in Salford

Chief Constable Ian Hopkins praised his officers and said it was a ‘miracle’ no-one was seriously hurt or killed.

“They were absolutely magnificent and worked extraordinarily long hours, giving everything to support people and keep them safe,” he told the M.E.N.

He added: “Given the scale of the flooding it was a miracle really that nobody died or was seriously injured.”

On Sunday morning Mr Hopkins and other key figures in the north west took part in a meeting of Cobra, the Government’s emergency response committee, chaired by the Prime Minister David Cameron, via a conference call, to co-ordinate the clean-up operation following the flooding.

(Image: Sean Hansford)

North West Ambulance Service were also scrambled to dozens of flood-related incidents on Boxing Day although none was thought to be serious.

Their Hazardous Area Response Unit, who are specially trained at dealing with people trapped in water and other hard-to-reach areas, based in Trafford, were deployed throughout the region.

Among the people they helped were people stranded in flooded cars.

They took a total of six patients to hospital as a direct result of the floods and treated numerous others for conditions such as asthma which were triggered by the cold, wet conditions.

Watch: Flooded playing fields in Salford

Video Loading Video Unavailable Click to play Tap to play The video will start in 8 Cancel Play now

Tony Lloyd, Police and Crime Commissioner for Greater Manchester, said: “I want to offer my special thanks to all those who were there to help those in need when that need was at its greatest.

"The public are rightly grateful to each and everyone for little acts of kindness through to the response needed that made people feel safe and let them know that things would be alright.

“Greater Manchester has done its bit and now we look to the government to play a part.

Pictures: Aftermath of the Boxing Day floods

"We need a quick announcement on government funding to help individuals, families and businesses get back to where they were.

"We need certainty for those who have lost so much especially those who couldn’t afford insurance.

"And we need a quick turnaround of claims in a non-bureaucratic way that is really designed to help.”