Toby and the Flood

"The dam's breaking up! We must warn everyone!"

- Toby's driver

Toby and the Flood is the tenth episode of the fifth season.

Plot
During many days of rain, Toby is asked to investigate a dam during rainy weather, and discovers it is about to burst its banks. Toby hurries to get to higher ground, but the bridge he is on is swept away after the dam collapses. Harold drops a rope to be tied to Toby's bufferbeam and gives the other end to Percy. Toby is saved and when the flood subsides and the dam mended, a party is held in Toby's honour.

Characters

 * Percy
 * Toby
 * Harold
 * Sir Topham Hatt
 * Rheneas (cameo)
 * Bertie (cameo)
 * Caroline (cameo)
 * Trevor (cameo)
 * Jem Cole (cameo)

Locations

 * The Dam

Trivia

 * Stock footage from Gallant Old Engine is used.
 * Inspiration for this episode might have come from the Elan Valley Railway, in Powys, Mid-Wales which had a section of railway line running along the front of a dam that was under construction.
 * The footage of Percy racing after Toby is sped up.
 * In Japan this episode is called "Toby was Swept Away". The Swedish title is, "The Flood".

Goofs

 * The narrator mentions that Toby has his own branchline, but Toby does not have his own branchline anymore.
 * Toby's driver could have driven Toby off the bridge before it was swept away, but Toby just sat on the bridge for a few seconds, allowing himself to be carried downriver.
 * Toby's driver is grinning when he says "It's our only chance!"
 * Harold is smiling when he follows Toby.
 * Toby should have been pulled to safety with the rope tied to the bridge.
 * How can Toby be "safe at last" when he is still on the bridge in the water?
 * In the UK narration, Toby says "Help!" long before he is swept downriver.
 * In two scenes, Toby's driver has a different model.
 * Percy said he could never have been so brave, but he proved himself to be very brave in previous episodes.
 * Toby turns around between the time he is on the dam and when he returns to the bridge.
 * An engine could not float down a river on a bridge.
 * The dam was built concaved away from the water it holds back, it should have been built concurved.
 * When the narrator says "As Toby floated helplessly on the flood waters..." you can see that Toby is still only just floating away from the broken bridge.