The Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway (The Honeybourne Line) has suffered a further major embankment collapse.

This time, the collapse is at the so-called 'Chicken Curve' on the Toddington side of Winchcombe station, near to where the railway crosses the B4632 Winchcombe to Broadway road.

It comes after the railway suffered a £1 million embankment failure at Gotherington last year, repair of which is progressing well.

Malcolm Temple, Chairman of the volunteer-run Gloucestershire Warwickshire Steam Railway, says the railway's volunteer staff are devastated at this latest turn of events.

"Last year was the worst in the railway's 29-years  of preservation history. 

"Not only did we suffer the Gotherington collapse, which is subject to a £1 million emergency appeal, but several days of our busy Santa Specials were lost because of heavy snow and freezing conditions, costing us between £50,000 and £60,000 in lost revenue.

"Just when we thought we were putting a terrible year behind us, this happens."

Engineers are assessing the extent of the damage but it is thought that repair will cost up to a further £0.5 million and will take several months to complete. 

A problem was identified early in January and trains were stopped from passing over the embankment as a precaution.  Remedial work was carried out but the embankment failed completely.  It is believed that a combination of water accumulating under the embankment and the recent freezing conditions led to fractures deep within the embankment. 

Adds Malcolm Temple: "Unfortunately, our insurers, who are paying for part of the Gotherington collapse, will not be prepared to meet the cost of this latest disaster.

"Our financial reserves have been wiped out by both the Gotherington embankment failure and by loss of our Santa Special income.  We are not running trains now because of the planned winter break so we have almost no income.

"Frankly, this has brought the railway to its knees. 

"It is the biggest challenge our railway has ever faced and is certainly one of the worst disasters to affect any UK heritage railway."

The railway is organising an emergency meeting to decide on the way forward, Malcolm Temple explains. 

"Our initial thought is that for much of this year, we are likely to be running two railways - one between Cheltenham and Winchcombe (once the Gotherington repair is completed) and one between Toddington and Laverton, on a new extension which will open next year," he says.

"We have had to deal with a lot of problems over recent months and this could hardly be a more awful outcome.  But we are a resilient group and we will pull together and come up with an action plan. 

"Top of the list is to refresh our appeal launched last year by our president Pete Waterman - we need every penny we can raise."

Details of how to donate to the Emergency Appeal, which was launched last year and has raised over £200,000, can be found at www.gwsr.com

'Chicken Curve' has historically caused problems for both the Great Western Railway, which built the line, and for British Railways.  It was here that a freight train derailed, closing the route, in 1976. 

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Media contact: Ian Crowder, 07775 566 555 orian.crowdeer@gwsr.com