Images from the air show the extent of flooding on railway lines across the North West.
Shocking images show train tracks left underwater, after National Rail’s helicopter team sent an aircraft up to survey the extent of the damage caused by Storm Christoph.
Thankfully, Network rail say that ‘initial signs’ show there has been no lasting damage after the floods in Merseyside, Cheshire, Lancashire and Cumbria.
Network Rail's extreme weather action team used high volume pumps to clear floodwater and minimise damaged to track, signalling equipment, cuttings and embankments over the last few days.
The Network Rail Air Operations team carried out its sky-high inspections of the track on the West Coast main line and other key rail routes around the North West today.
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Back on the ground much of the railway network is now open to trains as normal.
In Merseyside, travel was particularly disrupted in the south Wirral area, Maghull and St Helens.
Roads were closed across the region and hundreds of residents living in Maghull were told by Sefton Council to evacuate for safety.
Phil James, Network Rail’s North West route director, said: "I’m extremely proud of my teams who’ve battled horrendous conditions to keep the railway safe for passengers and freight during Storm Christoph.
"We invest tens of millions of pounds making the railway more robust so it can cope when extreme weather events like this happen.
"It seems this preparation work on the ground has paid off – proven by today’s helicopter inspections from the skies and other aerial photos taken by drones in recent days."
With snow and ice forecast over the weekend there may be further travel disruption, passengers are being advised to check www.nationalrail.co.uk for the latest weather updates.
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