Teignbridge took a major pre-Christmas battering eaerly this week which left homes deluged, motorists stranded in floodwater and fallen trees littering many roads across the area.In Newton Abbot residents held their breath as the water level at the Holbeam Dam rose to its highest level since it opened in 1982.Two bands of heavy rain on Monday until early Christmas Eve, driven by gale force winds, saw the dam, near Bickington, brought into use.By 5.45am on Tuesday the Environment Agency reported that water in the dam had reached 8.92m, its highest level since it was installed.