Audlem closed, again!

[Francis Herne]

I went through there (in both directions, on someone else's boat) on Monday afternoon which seems to have been fortunate timing. No sign of anything wrong then.

 

Like the poster above I find it very hard to believe in it being "vandalism" in the normal sense. Halfway up Audlem flight on a busy day isn't the usual habitat of casual vandals, and with such a short time between boats it would have to be planned by someone who knew what they were doing. I can't think of a deliberate motive either.

 

Seems more likely to me that one of the last few boats hit the gates pretty hard and broke or dislodged the pins. The towpath-side collar appears to still be around the gate, the other might have been removed after the event to prevent it falling on anyone, or perhaps by a very naïve boater beforehand.

 

Attached photo by a friend within an hour or so of the event.

Edited July 31 by Francis Herne

[hider]

Ah, the boat in the lock is going down ( presumable, bow first ) so the boat coming up managed to open the gates on an empty lock. The gates would float in the lock as it filled.

I wonder if the boat coming up crashed the gates and dislodged the collars, unlikely but plausible.

[magpie patrick]

1 hour ago, Francis Herne said:

 

Like the poster above I find it very hard to believe in it being "vandalism" in the normal sense. Halfway up Audlem flight on a busy day isn't the usual habitat of casual vandals, and with such a short time between boats it would have to be planned by someone who knew what they were doing. I can't think of a deliberate motive either.

 

 They don't need one other than a desire to cause chaos

 

When I worked at Frome Town Council we had rangers inspect every item of play equipment in each park first thing (around 630am in summer) - the number of times we found bolts loosened, or even left in place but the nut on the other end removed. not every day but often enough to warrant these inspections. It was rarely obvious damage (that's reserved for the toilets) but an action that someone knew might cause the equipment to fail. In most cases the equpiment would have worked "for a while" before the bolt fell off.

[David Mack]

37 minutes ago, hider said:

Ah, the boat in the lock is going down ( presumable, bow first ) so the boat coming up managed to open the gates on an empty lock. The gates would float in the lock as it filled.

I wonder if the boat coming up crashed the gates and dislodged the collars, unlikely but plausible.

Or maybe the bottom gates were already open with the collars removed when the boat going up arrived. After the boat had entered the lock the crew closed the bottom gates in a way which kept the hinge posts against the quoins. As soon as water was admitted to the lock the pressure of the water on the gates would push the hinge posts into the quoins and the mitre posts together, so the lock would fill as normal, and it was only once the lock was empty again that the gates fell out.

[Arthur Marshall]

2 hours ago, dogless said:

I understood it was the collar retaining pins/ bolts that had been removed.

 

Is that not so ?

 

Rog

The collars are off and so are the wedges.

[dogless]

The vandals were well equipped with tools then ?

Rog

[Jerra]

6 hours ago, David Mack said:

Do you always check the collar is in place before opening a lock gate?

No but I will be in future.

[beerbeerbeerbeerbeer]

3 hours ago, David Mack said:

Or maybe the bottom gates were already open with the collars removed when the boat going up arrived. After the boat had entered the lock the crew closed the bottom gates in a way which kept the hinge posts against the quoins. As soon as water was admitted to the lock the pressure of the water on the gates would push the hinge posts into the quoins and the mitre posts together, so the lock would fill as normal, and it was only once the lock was empty again that the gates fell out.

Is there any possibility the boat in the lock could have done it?

Gone in too fast and banged fk out the gates. 
And broke what were possibly already dodgy pins?

then when letting the water out the gates fell inwards

 

[ditchcrawler]

17 minutes ago, beerbeerbeerbeerbeer said:

Is there any possibility the boat in the lock could have done it?

Gone in too fast and banged fk out the gates. 
And broke what were possibly already dodgy pins?

then when letting the water out the gates fell inwards

 

The only time I came across something similar was going up Knowle  bottom lock, the boat ahead had lifted the top gate and left the lock closing behind them, but they didn't meet as it was out at the bottom, they went merrily on their way, we called CRT and went up the N Stratford

[David Mack]

56 minutes ago, beerbeerbeerbeerbeer said:

Is there any possibility the boat in the lock could have done it?

Gone in too fast and banged fk out the gates. 

Like this?

[beerbeerbeerbeerbeer]

Oh dear. 
 

Don't hold back on the information, where’s it to? and when?

[Rob-M]

2 minutes ago, beerbeerbeerbeerbeer said:

Oh dear. 
 

Don't hold back on the information, where’s it to? and when?

There was a discussion 

 

[Ian Mac]

I must put a load money into the euro millions on Friday ,as I have far more chance of winning, than these gates falling out of their collars due to anything C&RT have done, or not done. One gate maybe, with a following win, and a none used canal, both gates - impossible.

--

Cheers IAn MAc

[dogless]

But it's only one gate according to the photo on page one of this thread ... or do you know more ?

 

Rog

[hider]

1 minute ago, dogless said:

But it's only one gate according to the photo on page one of this thread ... or do you know more ?

 

Rog

Both collars are off.

[dogless]

Curiouser and Curiouser.

 

Brings to mind an incident on the Chesterfield canal where balance beams were being cut off with a chain saw.

 

As I recall it transpired a local farmer was responsible who was in dispute with C&RT ... sure someone here remembers better than I.

 

Rog

[Slim]

19 hours ago, hider said:

From habit I do look at a lock and the mechanisms to ensure it is workable, especially now that so many have faults that have not been repaired. True, missing collars may not be apparent but all the bits left on the floor near the gate may be a hint that all is not well to any boater.

Steady on, your Halo may slip. 

[Midnight]

5 minutes ago, dogless said:

Curiouser and Curiouser.

 

Brings to mind an incident on the Chesterfield canal where balance beams were being cut off with a chain saw.

 

As I recall it transpired a local farmer was responsible who was in dispute with C&RT ... sure someone here remembers better than I.

 

Rog

Wasn't that the Rochdale dispute over the M62 underpass?

 

Like others I find it hard to understand vandalism in it's truest sense, why lock 10 when there's others a bit more handy? My guess is the gates were rammed by a big heavy boat which loosened the wedges. Lots of big heavy boats around last weekend.

[Ian Mac]

13 minutes ago, Midnight said:

Wasn't that the Rochdale dispute over the M62 underpass?

 

Like others I find it hard to understand vandalism in it's truest sense, why lock 10 when there's others a bit more handy? My guess is the gates were rammed by a big heavy boat which loosened the wedges. Lots of big heavy boats around last weekend.

HA HA HA!

given the construction of the feathers there is zero chance of that happening and then i heard that the parts were neatly piled up near by. This is someone with a serious grudge, so it is likely to happen again, until they are caught.

 

PS The new lock 53 on the Rochdale was one of the locks which had its beams saw off.  I still do not understand the farmers dispute, as they ended up with a far better access route.

[hider]

51 minutes ago, Slim said:

Steady on, your Halo may slip. 

Are you looking for an argument or just being childishly unpleasant?

4 minutes ago, Ian Mac said:

HA HA HA!

given the construction of the feathers there is zero chance of that happening and then i heard that the parts were neatly piled up near by. This is someone with a serious grudge, so it is likely to happen again, until they are caught.

 

PS The new lock 53 on the Rochdale was one of the locks which had its beams saw off.  I still do not understand the farmers dispute, as they ended up with a far better access route.

French saboteurs? 

[MtB]

8 minutes ago, Ian Mac said:

HA HA HA!

given the construction of the feathers there is zero chance of that happening and then i heard that the parts were neatly piled up near by. This is someone with a serious grudge, so it is likely to happen again, until they are caught.

 

 

Indeed. 

 

A 'mindless vandal' would have tossed the removed parts into the water, if only to make it even more difficult to fix.

 

Arranging the parts removed neatly on the apron must have been deliberate, possibly in the hope that the next boater along would notice them and not touch the gates.

 

 

[IanM]

You never know what goes through the minds of people.

 

It could be that one boat removed them after going through the lock for "sh*ts and giggles" to slow down 'mates' of theirs following behind who they figured would notice them and have to replace them and they all would have a jolly good laugh about it when they met up at a pub that evening.

[Arthur Marshall]

Dunno whether it's relevant  but apparently the local youth are seriously disgruntled at the moment as the local council dismantled their skateboard ramps last week, for no apparent reason and with no notice, just before the school holidays. I understand they were only put up in the pandemic. This is hearsay from a local and I can't see any reason why they should take it out on the canal  but there it is.

I do hope CRT have walked up the flight to check the rest of them. Progress so far is the erection of DEFRA tape round the lock entrance.

Edited August 1 by Arthur Marshall

[haggis]

1 hour ago, IanM said:

You never know what goes through the minds of people.

 

It could be that one boat removed them after going through the lock for "sh*ts and giggles" to slow down 'mates' of theirs following behind who they figured would notice them and have to replace them and they all would have a jolly good laugh about it when they met up at a pub that evening.

Surely boaters wouldn't be that stupid ! 

[hider]

Feathers, that's the word I was looking for, thanks.