Llangollen Canal morning, a mail and goods train composed of 16 carriages and two vans, to crash into the breach, killing one and injuring two engine crew. Despite the canal being officially closed, the breach was repaired, so that water could continue to reach the main line at Hurleston. The use of the canal as a water supply channel was further bolstered by an agreement with what became the Mid & South East Cheshire Water Board, who used it to supply water to their Hurleston reservoir, and agreed to maintain it. Although there had been little traffic since the end of the
Llangollen Canal appeal against closure, and gave the first hints that such canals could be retained because of their social value for recreation. Hugh McKnight, the editor of the Inland Waterways Association's "Bulletin", wrote an optimistic report in 1966, pointing to the achievements of the first 20 years of the organisation's existence, mentioning the changes in public opinion concerning the canals, and pointing particularly to the growth in leisure use on the Llangollen Canal and the Oxford Canal. Official attitudes changed, and the provisions of the Transport Act 1968 placed the canals under the control of the British Waterways Board, who were