Rod Bender

I recommend my Solicitor 01279638832 Ref After 4 years - CRT Settle Out of Court. Attwaters, Rothwell House , West Square HARLOW Essex CM20 1LQ. Expect the worst from CRT and remember - Quote CRT QC - "CRT will settle out of court rather than have it on record that they are guilty. That would not go down well with the Charity Commission."

MY most relaxing passage across the Pontcysylite aqueduct was cruising North towards Trevor. When I reached the narrow trough the fog was so dense I stepped on to the towpath, walked forward listening for an oncoming boat - no sounds - stepped back on-board and cruised across oblivious to the height because I couldn't even see my chimney 40 feet ahead.

His right foot on his boat, left foot on my boat,, water pouring over the starboard cant, down the steps, through the Starboard access door and into my boat. My thanks to members post regarding boat hang-ups, interesting and informative. The post below appears to be 'spot on'.

Quote Arthur "It might be worth asking for something sensible instead, like "make sure lock chambers & gates are free of protrusions/indentations that HAVE snagged boats". Indeed that is exactly what I have asked members to do - "ask CRT tp make lock 40 and all Bank Newton locks safe." These locks alone. Bank Newton flight have twenty two incidents on CRT records involving chamber wall hang-ups, including 8 at Lock 38 and 7 at Lock 40. On three occasions when I have returned to Bank Newton since my boat sinking I have taken photos of fresh chamber wall scars. Evidence of boat hang-ups and the probability of another serious incident, or death.

Thank you MAGIC TIME " I don't see the fundamental mystery here. If the CRT bloke's right, even a 2" drop in water level would suffice to explain how the stern came to drop below the 16" freeboard." Hopefully those members, who up to now have difficulties with the FACTS, will realise that the stern dropped below the 16" freeboard while the water level in Lock 40 remained the same. GOT IT? Now let us get Lock 40 and all Bank Newton flight of locks safe by asking CRT when they are going to meet their adopted Minimum Safety Standards "Lock chambers and gates are free of protrusions / indentations that could snag boats." ( See CRT Customer Service Standards CSS 2.d.3 )

Quote Alan Ficher "So it's not important to answer the question "if the level was only down by a few inches by the time all paddles were already down, how come the level in the lock then seems to have continued to go down by a couple of feet to the point that a boat sank?" An important question and I trust my reply will suffice. After the boat sinking, near drowning of my wife and the child AND four years agony from CRT I want the nightmares to go away. The bottom paddles were CLOSED. The lock water level only went down a few inches and remained at that level throughout the sinking of my boat. ie the lock water level did not go down further than the few inches. The boats stern went down beyond the 16" freeboard (waterline to the top of the cant ) thus enabling lock water to flood over the cant nd into the boat. Remember the CRT recovery staff quote "With the bows hung-up a 1" loss of lock water level at the bows is 10" at the stern. You did not stand a chance." ie Our 59ft Nboat, angled downwards front to back, was drawing normal water level Forward AND submerged Aft by a multiple of 1 : 10.

My final Posting regarding my narrow boat sinking 10 August 2012. In the interest of boaters Lock 40 North Chamber Wall remedial work is what members should be concerned about. The probability of more boat hang-ups at Lock 40 and Bank Newton Flight is high. Members should be pressing CRT to implement their adopted Minimum Safety Standards by making Lock 40 safe for use by CRTs customers. Both bottom paddles were closed immediately. I have no knowledge of how far the water level had dropped as and when I ran to open the top gate paddles.. However, it is a fact that the lock water level had dropped sufficient enough for flooding water to pour over the Starboard 'cant' and into the boat. At that time the boat was listing to Starboard, adding to the quick loss of 'freeboard' (16 inches) I do recall that this flow appeared to be no deeper than half an inch. Quote a previous post; “Once the water starts pouring in it adds to the moment that is tipping the boat and it will soon be unstoppable even if the water level doesn't go down any more.

Recent quote for transporting my 34ft x 9ft Dutch Barge to Ireland is £3,400. £500 for lift out at Reading. £1,800 Transport on flatbed lorry. £600 Ferry Fare - Lorry & Barge. £500 Crane into the water at Ireland - should we be able to find a Crane facility? Any suggestions welcome. NOTE: The bottom of the Mon and Brecon Canal is not mud or silt. Beware of buying a boat which has been cruising the Mon & Brecon Canal because the base plate could be thin due wear from grating along the rough canal bottom - unforgiving stones.

I've read it again repeatedly, and still don't understand the point it is trying to make. The issue surely is simply if the bows continue to be held up, but the water is falling away under the stern, how low can the stern go before water starts to flow in. I also am not really understanding that if the paddles were genuinely wound no more than 6 turns out of a maximum of 44, (which sounds to be less than 14% open), how it was not possible to halt things before the water was rushing in to the boat. The two operators of the bottom paddles opened each paddle two turns alternately. No more than six turns open. The first two turns are not enough to pass water through a paddle. When the alarm was raised both bottom paddles were closed immediately. The boat appeared to be hung-up by the bows. At that stage the lock water level had dropped only a few inches. However, after I ran and opened one top paddle it had dropped enough for water to be pouring over the cant and into the boat. Yes, despite the immediate and correct action of the crew the flooding of my boat happened that fast. As posted previously, because the lock water level was static and water was pouring into the boat its fate was sealed - to flood up until the bows broke free and sink in the time it takes to say WHOOSH. ADDITIONAL TO MY POST LAST NIGHT : However, Lock 40 is unique, it has both hidden protrusions and a 6” out of vertical area of chamber wall above a hidden protrusion. This area is about five cooping stones long, or 15 ft. CRT HAVE ON RECORD AT LEAST SIX BOAT HANG-UPS BEFORE MY BOAT HUNG-UP AND SANK. SINCE MY BOAT SINKING I HAVE VISITED LOCK 40 ON THREE DIFFERENT OCCASIONS AND TAKEN PHOTOS OF 'FRESH' SCARS ON THE NORTH CHAMBER WALL, PROOF THAT BOATS ARE HANGING UP. THEREFORE LOCK 40 IS UNIQUE AND THE PROBABILiTY OF ANOTHER LOCK 40 BOAT HANG-UP IS HIGH. Ken Churchill

2017 01 14 Ken Trying To Answer Some Questions Members, I have noted several Posts which need my reply, below in italics. Apologies for not including the names against each posting. “... how ill-prepared and at error the boat owner was leaving, the front door locked whilst someone was in the boat, Edit to add : Entirely agree, all exits should be unlocked and available at all times when anyone is on board.” The cratch door was closed not locked. When my wife entered the boat to remove the child “from a frightening situation” she was not aware that the boat was sinking and led the child aft to the port side hatch. At that time the boat was flooded within two feet of their feet and I lifted the child out of the port side hatch followed by helping my wife to safety. By standing on the port gun-whale – possibly 18 inches below the coping stones – the stern was probably 2 x 18” = 3Ft underwater and taking on water fast. Releasing hold of my Wife I did not have time to turn around and see the boat sink.. “ I think most narrow boats of 60 feet long can survive having their front end held 2 feet higher than normal, without the back end sinking.” UNTRUE as the scenario above proves. Quote CRT Recovery Staff “1 inch loss of water at the bows is 10” loss at the stern. You did not stand chance.” “ a 60ft boat at 2 degrees slope would be about 2ft low at one end.” True, ditto, with the bows hung-up and before breaking free and sinking. our boat was probably 3ft down by the stern. “I wonder if it is because some of those L&L paddles actually take in excess of 40 turns to raise .”. (true 44 turns. ). “Once the water starts pouring in it adds to the moment that is tipping the boat and it will soon be unstoppable even if the water level doesn't go down any more. So you first have to close the bottom sluices and then go to the other end of the lock to open the top gates to start correcting the water level. That takes quite a few seconds or probably rather more than a minute.” The bottom paddles,no more than six turns open , were immediately closed (44 turns required for wide) followed by a top paddle. At this stage water was pouring over the 'cant' and flooding into the boat through the rear door which could not be closed because my wife and child were inside the boat. Their rescue became paramount. Having walked through the incident many times I can safely say that the whole incident , shout of alarm to sinking, took less than two minutes. The most important issue I wish to cover is in response to a post regarding rebuilding all lock chamber walls which do not come up to Minimum Safety Standards. Obviously far too many locks come into this category and the coast would be prohibitive. Many have protrusions, some are out of vertical and only a few have reported boat hang-ups – 24 reported incidents on the Leeds & Liver Pool Canal. Nil on the almost identical Kennet & Avon Canal where they take Health & Safety seriously. However, Lock 40 is unique, it has both hidden protrusions and a 6” out of vertical area of chamber wall above a hidden protrusion. This area is about five cooping stones long, about 15 ft. To make Lock 40 safe, in my opinion, the ashlar blocks beneath these coping stones need lifting out, turned 180 degrees and replaced. A vertical and safe chamber wall is achieved by replacing the coping stones in a straight line. Cost ? I am told £20,000 Ken Churchill / Rod Bender

QUOTE GRAHAM DAVIS - 6 incidents in how long a period and with what sorts of boats? Sorry, but if that was over a long term and with different types of boats then it isn't a "trend" to me. CRT provided me with twenty two (22) Bank Newton Chamber Wall incident reports, six at Lock 40, from 2006 to August 2012. In their correspondence CRT stated the above as "a trend which we pay particular attention to". We know different... Narrowboat hang-ups plus one wide-beam hang-up. A shallow draft wide-beam, less than 23", is more likely to hang-up on the hidden ledge 23" below the water line. Incident report - YER TIS... 26.04.2010. 15:15 Ruth Moran (RMORAN) 11125965 MoP = Boat Caught on Lock Wall Lock 40 Bank Newton 2nd Lock It has been reported that on 02.04.2010 a wide beam craft was going down into the lock & the bottom plate caught on a projecting ridge stone on the tow path side, 3rd course to square quion. Crew started to shut down tail gate paddle & boat slipped off stonework 30.04.2010 09:22 Steve Astles (SASTLES) Phone 01606723901 HSA has requested that a visual inspection of the lock be undertaken to confirm that projecting brickwork is not presenting a significant hazard. Email sent to MM 30/04/2010 Nine months later the visual inspection took place, details unavailable at the moment but it described a high risk chamber wall with copious ledges 30 mm deep, altogether a very sorry state. However, no remedial work was carried out. Despite two lives almost lost during my boat sinking CRT did not inspect Lock 40 until 7 days later when Iain Weston declared "No remedial work required." My solicitors requested minutes of this meeting - result - Nil Reply. If this was not so I would tell you so. Ken Churchill

QUOTE Alan "C&RT has about £750 million of assets." Does this £750 million include the £300 million held in reserves? If not then surely CRT will have £300 million to spend on the waterway system. Rumor has it CRT are hanging on to the £300 million and using grant funding, joint funding and the like until 2020 when government funding runs out. Is this true ? However, £20,000 remedial work on Lock 40, with a known "trend" of at least seven chamber wall hang-ups on record, pre August 2012, is peanuts.

INCIDENTSRef CRT's Boaters ' Handbook page 24 “If you do have an accident, or near miss, you should report it to the local waterway officer or member of staff on the bank. Your report could help to save others.”

2017 01 13 POST for CANALWORLD FORUM Reference: ALAN D - Since 2007 BW/C&RT have had minimum safety standards. These include that locks ( Ref CRT's adopted 'Standard for Pubic Risk Management' Pages 66 & 67.) should be free of indentations and protrusions that can cause hang ups. They have known for years that lock 40 does not comply with minimum safety standards and also fails on the generic risk assessment for locks. When Ken Churchill took the matter up with HSE, the Trust failed to disclose that the lock in question and other locks on the flight failed to meet their own standards. Instead, they blamed the hang up incident on boater error. Quite simply, C&RT should fix locks such that they meet minimum safety standards. Cost should not be an issue. Indeed when I took the matter up with CRT they provided incident records of at least six boat hang-ups at Lock 40 and later stated that “they look out for trends”. Six hang-ups at Lock 40 IS A TREND. Lock 40 does not meet CRT adopted Minimum safety standards and thus should have priority attention. In total CRT provided twenty two incident reports of boat chamber wall hang-ups at the Bank Newton Locks flight of locks. HELLO! Isn't that a TREND which needs attention before lives are lost. Ken Churchill / Rod Bender

Can you fix a 6" layback with a saw? How long before another ledge appears? The top of the wall needs rebuilding. It wouldn't seem to need more than a few days by a decent stone-mason unless the real problem is the whole wall is bulging and the top is the true position. But for me the underlying problem is an institutional one. The legal department of the trust hadn't moved on since the days of BW which is what most of my canal experience is based on. Their instinct is first to deny; second to prevent others knowing about settlements that were made and third to prevent spreading alarm due to putting up warning notices. I gather the principals have now retired. I sincerely hope they are being replaced by people with a totally different mentality. But lawyers are a conservative bunch. Chris How true Chris. When BW was transferred to CRT unfortunately Vincent Moran and Anthony Stammers remained in their high power positions and continued practicing their BW Culture of denial, always boaters fault, never CRT responsibility, and ignore adopted policies including Health & Safety. Both have now retired and hopefully CEO Richard Parry will be able to make the changes necessary for the safety of boaters and the good name of CRT from now on. NOTE: CRT's adopted 'Standard for Pubic Risk Management' Pages 66 & 67 states "that locks should be free of indentations and protrusions that can cause hang ups." One of many adopted policies which V Moran and A Stammers totally ignored. Ken Churchill