FOURTEEN months ago, Cefn Mably Farm Park was flooded so severely due to Storm Dennis that its owners faced a lengthy period of shutdown to repair the damage - and then coronavirus arrived in Wales.

The popular visitor attraction, between Newport and Cardiff, was in the middle of a major refurbishment when the storm hit and the site was inundated after the nearby River Rhymney burst its banks.

With emergency services otherwise occupied saving lives across South Wales, the family and staff had to salvage what they could themselves, managing also to rescue all the animals, after wading chest high into the water to drag them to higher ground.

The enforced lay-off - made even longer by lockdown restrictions - has however, been turned into a positive by owner Rhys Edwards who has taken advantage of the time to more or less start from scratch.

He took made the decision to knock down and rebuild a newer and better family attraction, one that would have a defence against major flooding if it ever happened again.

Having worked and lived at the farm for most of his adult life, Mr Edwards is very passionate about in improving and growing the family-run farm park.

And this passion has brought about a completely new look for visitors to enjoy from Monday, April 26.

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The final touches to key aspects of the park are being completed, with the new main attraction being a 12¼ gauge electric locomotive.

“The park isn’t finished just yet, we’ve yet to build the new main building, along with the new Moody Sow [the farm shop on the site],” said Mr Edwards.

“The past year has been a lot of hard work, but we’re glad that we can finally open to the public to show them the progress that we’ve made.

“The farm park is constantly evolving, for those who have visited throughout the years, they could tell you all the changes we’ve made.

“The flood and the global pandemic wasn’t good for anyone, but we’ve managed to turn both those things into a positive, as the changes we’ve made would never have got done if we were still open.

“The response from everyone has been incredible, and the amount of people asking when we’re open again is crazy. Now that we are, we look forward to welcoming them through our gates.”

The main attraction of the working farm is the animals, but families of all ages will now be able to get up close by taking a train ride across the park.

The purpose-built track goes through numerous paddocks to see a wide variety of animals, through a tunnel and under a bridge, past the duck pond, and back to the main station.

The carriages of the train are named after Rhys’ wife Alyona, and daughters Dasha and Tatiana.

While the new main building is being built, a temporary 100ft open-sided marquee has been erected for people to enjoy hot food and beverages whilst visiting.

Other new additions include a new playground with combine harvester play fort, a 30ft sand pit, and Cefn Mably Farm Park-themed crazy golf.

A new booking system via the park farm website - www.cefnmablyfarmpark.com - will allow visiting slots to be allocatedt, as there are limited numbers allowed on the park at any one time due to social distancing rules.