A MUCH loved local book shop has been hit by a fresh chapter of water damage just a year after its ceiling caved in due to heavy rainfall.

The beloved Wemyss Bay Station book shop - which donates all its proceeds towards the historic railway station - was forced to close for two weeks last August after torrential rain caused extensive damage.

Simon Dell, manager of the shop - run by volunteer organisation Friends of Wemyss Bay Station - says they are 'back at square one' after this week's storms triggered another leak.

Simon said: "I was just opening up and then saw the water - it wasn’t just a little drip but a big downpour running down the walls.

"I put buckets down and I was getting completely soaked.

"We nearly lost a lot of books.

"Thankfully we did not have too many sitting nearby, as we were still keeping the space clear because of what happened last year.

"But this is just the start of the wet weather, so for something like this to happen now is a big worry."

After the ceiling collapsed last year, Network Rail - who are responsible for maintaining the iconic station - installed a new drainpipe and a temporary ceiling in the unit.

However, even before this week's incident parts of the shop still remained out of bounds as repairs were ongoing.

Simon, who manages the shop and its 20-strong band of volunteers, says that the latest setback is frustrating.

He said: "We aren't complaining about Network Rail, as they are trying.

"They are here all the time, but nonetheless we are now back at square one.

"We can’t fix the issues ourselves, as the repairs are Network Rail’s responsibility."

According to the Railway Heritage Trust and Network Rail, the category A listed building is of 'national or international historical or architectural importance.'

A key problem according to Simon - who took over from previous manager Sheena Inglis in 2021 - is the available budget allocated to maintain the 'national treasure.'

Simon said: "We never had anything like this happen to us for the decade we'd been here until last year.

"For it to happen again one year afterwards is a big challenge for us.

"It just is such a historic building and needs a lot of maintenance.

"There is no consistent maintenance budget.

"Money gets allocated once in large sums, but it should be year-on-year.

"We just want a fully functional book shop and to be able to get back to normal operations."

Speaking to the Tele about the recent events, a spokesperson for Network Rail said: "A £5 million two-year refurbishment of Wemyss Bay Station, which saw the canopies and glazed roof upgraded, repairs to the sea wall and improvements to the station buildings, was completed by Network Rail in 2016.

“We will continue to look after our stations as part of our ongoing maintenance and improvement programme.”

Simon says the shop has remained open and the team are determined to continue to operate as usual.

Simon added: "Despite the challenges we just keep going - we carry on and are always adapting.

"When Covid hit and we couldn't keep the shop open, we introduced the trolleys of books and honesty box outside, and that has proved really popular.

"Many people rushing to a train will run and grab a book for the journey and from that we get around £30 to £40 a week.

"This bookshop is a community resource – it creates a hub for people living in or visiting Wemyss Bay, but we wouldn’t exist without the community.

"We want to say thank-you to everyone who has visited us so far and we remain open for anyone planning a visit in future."