St Neots Riverside Miniature Railway flood on September 28

Riverside Miniature Railway in St Neots said it hopes to reopen next Sunday after 'extensive' flooding on September 28 left the site inaccessible. 

Founder and chairman Ivan Hewlett said while the scale of the flooding came as a "surprise", there had been no damage to the tracks or locomotives on site.

He told The Hunts Post: "We were well aware that the railway sat on a flood plain when we were offered the site in 2015, so we've been able to take measures to mitigate the impact of the flooding.

"The track will almost certainly be fine because of the way in which we've constructed it. It's built on 12-inch concrete so it stays in place. It will just need a bit of greasing for the moving parts once the water has flowed away. 

"Locomotives and carriages have also been stored above floodwater level."

It comes as residents across St Neots experienced significant disruption after the River Great Ouse burst its banks last week. 

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Flood warnings across Huntingdonshire were in force over the weekend after days of heavy rain saw the River Great Ouse reach its highest level since December 2020. 

A total of five flood warnings and three flood alerts are in force across the district on Sunday (September 29), with the Environment Agency warning residents that "flooding is still possible".

Ivan said that after a clean-up operation he hopes for the miniature railway to be up and running "as soon as possible." 

He added: "We were surprised to be flooded in September, but within 24 hours of the river getting back to normal levels, we can be up and running again. 

"It will just be case of sweeping off any debris from the track and potentially jet washing areas. We're planning to run through until the end of October, so hopefully we'll get another three or four running days this year."