A retired Bristol GP, Dr. Diana Warner, told a railway manager she aimed to “save the world” after halting a train bound for the UK’s largest power station on a day she was due in court, a jury heard. The 65-year-old was dressed in high-visibility orange gear and waving an orange flag when she stopped a 400-meter-long empty freight train near Drax power station in East Yorkshire on December 14, 2021, according to testimony at Leeds Crown Court.
Warner explained to the jury that she skipped a High Court appearance in London—where she faced charges for violating an injunction barring her from the M25 due to earlier Insulate Britain protests that gridlocked the motorway—to protest at the railway instead. She said the injunction breach later landed her a two-month jail term for contempt. By stopping the train, she hoped to draw attention to her climate activism, believing the publicity would amplify her cause.
The court learned that the train, traveling at 30 mph near Carlton village, stopped when the driver mistook Warner’s orange flag for a red one signaling danger. After she stepped off the tracks and the signaller confirmed no issues ahead, the train resumed its journey. Simon Vickers, a Network Rail mobile operations manager, recounted in a statement that Warner approached him at the scene, admitting she’d been on the tracks to protest Drax’s practices, citing deforestation and climate change. Vickers waited for police, but when they didn’t arrive, he photographed Warner—who offered him her flag as a keepsake—before she left to catch a bus.
In a video shown to the court, Warner stood by the stationary train, calling Drax “the most ridiculous power station on Earth” for burning wood pellets and “chomping through pristine forests.” As the train pulled away, the grandmother remarked, “This is so scary.” She told jurors her environmental activism began in the 1990s after her children’s birth, leading her to run for parliament twice with the Green Party. She drifted from the cause in the 2010s due to slow progress but had a “sudden awakening” in 2018, just before retiring. While examining a baby with hip dysplasia, she realized climate change posed a graver threat, vowing to act. Warner condemned Drax for burning trees, calling them “our heritage, our lifeline.”
Prosecutor Oliver Connor told the jury of seven men and five women that Warner’s presence on the tracks is undisputed, as is her trespassing. The contention lies in whether she obstructed the train, with the prosecution arguing that stopping it was obstruction enough. Connor noted Warner’s stated motive: exposing Drax’s false “green” image due to its role in Canadian deforestation. The incident caused no delays or costs, the court heard. Warner, of Filton Avenue, Bristol, denies one count of obstructing a railway engine or carriage under the Malicious Damage Act 1861.
| Visit for More News and Updates | WSOA NEWS |
