A TOURIST attraction will not reopen for at least another month after being badly damaged by flooding – and it could even be next year before visitors can return.

The owner of the York Dungeon, Merlin Entertainments, is consulting staff over the worst-case possibility of a long shut-down of the attraction, in Clifford Street, York, which could put up to 14 jobs at risk.

But a spokeswoman said the situation was looking more encouraging than it had been and the company’s aim was to minimise any need for redundancy, seeking where possible to find employees new roles within the group.

Nearly two-thirds of the dungeon building was affected when the River Ouse reached its highest levels in 12 years last month.

The spokeswoman said a detailed assessment of the damage had been conducted and the firm hoped to have a much clearer picture of the situation by next week.

She said while it was now evident major repairs were still required, it might be possible to get the attraction operational again earlier than was first thought.