Storm Darragh caused chaos for Corris Railway, forcing the cancellation of their Santa specials from 7-8 December.

Many Corris Railway volunteers travel from across the country, as far south as the Isle of Wight and as far north as Scotland. They completed the set-up on Friday, 6 December, and were looking forward to welcoming excited children.

But Saturday morning revealed landslips on the road north and south of Corris, a total loss of electricity at Corris and Maespoeth Junction and overwhelmed road drains on the A487, meaning rain water was flooding off the road and cascading into the machine shop, engine shed and loco inspection pit.

A line inspection revealed three trees blocking the line. By Saturday afternoon, local volunteers had cleared the road drains and stopped any further water ingress into the loco shed at Maespoeth.

Corris volunteers started a clean-up process to undo the damage caused to the infrastructure of the railway, something which will be undertaken in the run up to Christmas.

Historically Corris has relied upon the income gained over a busy weekend of Christmas running to help provide a financial cushion for the winter months when it is not open. Not running the specials means the railway is faced with the loss of this income, plus the additional loss of the not inconsiderable monies spent on setting up, including children's presents and the food and drink which are part of the visitor experience.

Thanks to the dedicated efforts of one volunteer, all pre-booked passengers were refunded by midnight on Saturday, 7 December, apart from those kind and generous people who asked the railway to keep the money as a donation.

Other local businesses suffered too, such as Corris Café and Slater’s Arms – both supporters of the railway.

The 2025 Corris Railway Santa Specials are scheduled for 13-14 December.