A MUSEUM'S appeal for help in recovering from the foot-and-mouth crisis has been answered by council donations of £300,000.

Beamish Museum, in County Durham, predicted a loss of up to £1m over two years as a result of the agricultural epidemic.

It estimated a 20 per cent drop in visitor income last year, with a reduction of at least ten per cent this year.

Following the sale of their interests in Newcastle Airport by share-holding councils last year, officials at Beamish reasoned that they should be able to contribute to the museum's recovery.

Councillor John Mawston, chairman of the Beamish Joint Committee, wrote to the leader of each authority.

His letter states: "Beamish is highly geared, with around £2.8m being earned and only £136,000 coming in as subsidy.

"This is likely to destabilise the unique regional project at Beamish, which has been running with outstanding success for 30 years.

"I note with some interest and a degree of envy that the North-East councils have shared in a windfall totalling almost £200m from the sale of shares in Newcastle International Airport.

"I know that all our councils have enormous demands for resources. Having said that, if there was ever a time to refresh my appeal for resources for Beamish, it must surely be now."

Positive responses have come from Sunderland city and Durham county councils, which have each pledged £150,000 on top of their annual contributions to Beamish.

The grants follow an extra £19,099 from regional development agency One NorthEast and £36,500 from the Northern Rock Foundation to aid recovery.

In a report to the Beamish committee, director Miriam Harte states: "We are hopeful the grants will go some way towards ensuring that we attract tourists back in the new 2002 season."