Whaley Bridge has become a ghost town as a breached dam threatens to flood the Derbyshire town.
Residents face spending another seven days away from their homes as the Toddbrook Reservoir remains liable to break through the compromised structure.
More than a thousand residents were evacuated from the town on Thursday when a week's worth of heavy rain caused part of the dam to collapse, Manchester Evening News reported.
As 1.3m tonnes of water continues to push on the crumbling dam wall, the streets of Whaley Bridge are eerily quiet.
Photos taken inside the High Peak town and from a drone flying above show road after road free from a single soul.
None of the picturesque conurbation's 6,500 residents can be seen.
It is unlikely the streets will return to their usual, bustling selves anytime soon.
The Canal and Riverside Trust, which owns the reservoir, has advised residents to keep away until next weekend.
Short periods of access have been granted for people to return to pick up their pets and essential possesions.
Dan Curley, 28, owns pub The Cock in Whaley Bridge and had been back to pick up clothes on Saturday.
He said: "I snuck in the back, they wouldn't let me in this morning.
"I just wanted to get some clean clothes for my little boy and some food for the dog."
He said he had heard he may not be allowed back in for seven days but said the loss in trade at the pub would be covered by insurance.
He said: "I just want to get back to normal now."
One person who remained in the town was author Hanna Sillitoe.
She posted a video to Twitter , which can be seen above, showing the deserted streets of Whaley Bridge.
"The centre of Whaley Bridge, which would normally be buzzing with shoppers, workers, people grabbing a coffee at the cafe ... eerily silent this morning," she wrote.
Overnight on Friday water flowing into Toddbrook was reduced considerably.
Engineers remain concerned about the integrity of the 180-year-old structure however.
An RAF Chinook dropped dozens of sand bags over the damaged part of the dam as fire-fighters use pumps to remove some of the water.
The sudden turn of dramatic events has left some Whaley Bridge residents in a state of shock.
Joan Pass, 78, was in tears after she returned to her home in the village to collect belongings.
She said: "We were out within 10 minutes on Thursday.
"The bells were ringing, I didn't know what the bells were ringing for, my daughter said get out, get your passport and your medication.
"I thought it was a bomb."
