Tragedy at Cropredy

[the grinch]

BBC news this morning carries the sad news that a lady has died after falling off a hire boat into the lock at cropredy. she probably hit her head on the cill is the official line at the moment.

[Athy]

A terrible thing to happen anywhere, but how sad that she perished at what, for many of us, is one of the most peaceful and idyllic spots on the canal system.

[carlt]

Link to story:

 

clicky

[sueb]

I wonder if it has a trad stern? Horrid thing to happen

Sue

[Water Rat.]

I wonder if it has a trad stern? Horrid thing to happen

Sue

 

Hire boats usually have cruiser sterns. But it make you wonder if holiday hirers have it impressed on them that the canals and 20 tonne steel boats can be very dangerous. Perhaps the tiller swung around and knocked her off. Very sad.

[NB Alnwick]

The picture in the BBC report shows Broadmoor Lock No 24 about a mile north of Cropredy but the general concensus is that the accident may have occured at Varney's Lock No 23 which is about half a mile further. All I know is that there was a commotion last night as three fire engines, police cars and para-medics streamed through the village. This morning the boat is tied up and cordoned off at Cropredy Wharf with the Police still in attendance. The word on the street is that the boat will be lifted out for further investigation. However the back of the vessel is covered with an awning and an undertaker's van has just arrived - I draw no conclusion from this and I do not know how the boat was brought back to Cropredy.

 

Additional information: the boat is red and named 'Harry' the occupants being a family of four including two teenage children.

 

I think it may be this one:

 

http://www.kateboats.co.uk/narrowboats/harry.htm

 

Boat details now confirmed as above.

Edited July 31, 2009 by NB Alnwick

[Bones]

How absolutely horendous. My thoughts are with the family, it must be a complete and utter horrifiyingly awful nightmare for them all.

[churchward]

It is sad to hear such news and that a holiday (doing what we all love to do) has ended in tragedy. Condolences to the family.

 

A reminder to us all as well that our pastime (like many others) can be dangerous and things can go wrong so we need to take care.

[NB Alnwick]

The picture in the BBC report shows Broadmoor Lock No 24 about a mile north of Cropredy but the general concensus is that the accident may have occured at Varney's Lock No 23 which is about half a mile further. All I know is that there was a commotion last night as three fire engines, police cars and para-medics streamed through the village. This morning the boat is tied up and cordoned off at Cropredy Wharf with the Police still in attendance. The word on the street is that the boat will be lifted out for further investigation. However the back of the vessel is covered with an awning and an undertaker's van has just arrived - I draw no conclusion from this and I do not know how the boat was brought back to Cropredy.

 

Additional information: the boat is red and named 'Harry' the occupants being a family of four including two teenage children.

 

I think it may be this one:

 

http://www.kateboats.co.uk/narrowboats/harry.htm

 

Boat details now confirmed as above.

 

I have a feeling that when the details emerge, they may be rather horrific.

Obviously we all feel very deep sympathy for the family and everyone involved with this incident.

[NB Alnwick]

I am moving this topic to General Boating.

[david and julie]

Very sad.

 

The Mail say the same lock as the BBC but show it from the opposite direction.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12...shire-lock.html

[Naughty Cal]

A terrible accident and our thoughts go out to the family and all involved.

 

Another reminder of how dangerous boating can be.

[Boatgypsy]

A terrible accident and our thoughts go out to the family and all involved.

 

Another reminder of how dangerous boating can be.

Whilst this incident is indeed tragic, we should remember that boating is NOT dangerous! There are inherent dangers in all aspects of life, but tragedies such as this are very rare. Most of us will be able to enjoy our boats for many years without ever being injured, let alone seriously or fatally.

 

Let us hope that this incident does not lead to the H&S brigade reacting in a knee-jerk fashion yet again.

[magpie patrick]

Reading one of the comments in the Daily Hail website I'd say the H and S outcry has unofficially started!

 

Phylis makes a good point though, not that boating IS dangerous but that it CAN BE dangerous. The risk of an accident is small, but the consequences of one can be fatal.

[NB Alnwick]

The Mail say the same lock as the BBC but show it from the opposite direction.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12...shire-lock.html

 

Without wishing to make light of this tragic story, it does annoy me when I see so many obvious inaccuracies in a simple story from a newspaper that many of its readers would choose to believe.

 

For example they refer to the deceased as a "middle aged barge fanatic" (how would they know that?), they show a picture of the wrong lock and they state that the deceased "fell off the back of the boat and cracked her head on the concrete river bank" - if they mean the River Cherwell, that would have been some achievement.

 

You just cannot believe all you read in the papers!

 

And, I have just noticed that they have moved Broadmoor Lock to "the Old Wharf in Cropredy, near Banbury." and they cannot even spell 'Broadmoor ' . . .

 

I suspect that 'the Old Wharf' was an address used by the emergency services as a location where they could get road access.

Edited July 31, 2009 by NB Alnwick

[richardf]

Reading one of the comments in the Daily Hail website I'd say the H and S outcry has unofficially started!

 

Phylis makes a good point though, not that boating IS dangerous but that it CAN BE dangerous. The risk of an accident is small, but the consequences of one can be fatal.

 

How many of us shut one of the gates in a narrow lock and make that big step across to the other side? I know I do it!

[Boatgypsy]

Reading one of the comments in the Daily Hail website I'd say the H and S outcry has unofficially started!

 

Phylis makes a good point though, not that boating IS dangerous but that it CAN BE dangerous. The risk of an accident is small, but the consequences of one can be fatal.

Nevertheless, I still feel that describing boating as even potentially dangerous is meaningless. We don't describe driving a car as dangerous, where the results of an accident are much more likely to be fatal. In fact you stand an immensely greater chance of dying in a car accident, or even walking along a road, than you do driving a boat. All aspects of life are potentially dangerous, in fact the most certain fact about life is that it always results in a fatality.

[The Toad in the Hole]

Nevertheless, I still feel that describing boating as even potentially dangerous is meaningless. We don't describe driving a car as dangerous, where the results of an accident are much more likely to be fatal. In fact you stand an immensely greater chance of dying in a car accident, or even walking along a road, than you do driving a boat. All aspects of life are potentially dangerous, in fact the most certain fact about life is that it always results in a fatality.

 

In my other life, I'm a bit of a climber and mountain walker. I offer the British Mountaineering Council participation statement:

 

"The BMC recognises that climbing, hill walking and mountaineering are activities with a danger of personal injury or death. Participants in these activities should be aware of and accept these risks and be responsible for their own actions."

 

Pretty much anything we do when we set foot outside the house has an element of risk. We owe it to ourselves and our loved ones to take sensible precautions to minimise that risk, but that shouldn't mean we don't do those things, or that we should be in a constant state of worry about what if...

 

In the interim, all we can do is offer our sincerest condolenses. More generally, as a rule of thumb on climbing forums, speculation about accidents is not encouraged. The important fact is that we have lost one of our own.

[carlt]

More generally, as a rule of thumb on climbing forums, speculation about accidents is not encouraged.

No that usually happens over a pint of Kamikaze, in the George and Dragon

[churchward]

Nevertheless, I still feel that describing boating as even potentially dangerous is meaningless. We don't describe driving a car as dangerous, where the results of an accident are much more likely to be fatal. In fact you stand an immensely greater chance of dying in a car accident, or even walking along a road, than you do driving a boat. All aspects of life are potentially dangerous, in fact the most certain fact about life is that it always results in a fatality.

It is true that boating on our inland canals is not inherently dangerous however it can be a danger to us if we ignore safe practice and taking care of ourselves and others around us. There are of course dangers in walking out the front door or indeed as statistics would show being in our own kitchen or bathroom where a lot of accidents and injuries occur. This incident though is a reminder that we cannot take our safety for granted and we need to mind what we do as we go and in particular at locks. This is not a cry for any excesses of health and safety mind you the canals are OK as they are but we just need to keep eye open.

[Yoda]

Because we live in a very social society, we are now not intuitively guarding against accidents. On my first visit to the USA, I noted how careful people were of even the simplest things because, they were a long way from hospital, it costs money when you get hurt and you might not get any help from anyone. A much more mature view of life.

 

I would think that it would be very difficult to ensure to 100% everyone's safety on a narrow boat but it must very very close to that figure anyway.

[NB Alnwick]

The Banbury Guardian has a more detailed report:

 

http://www.banburyguardian.co.uk/news/Narr...anal.5513417.jp

[cotswoldsman]

Without wishing to make light of this tragic story, it does annoy me when I see so many obvious inaccuracies in a simple story from a newspaper that many of its readers would choose to believe.

 

For example they refer to the deceased as a "middle aged barge fanatic" (how would they know that?), they show a picture of the wrong lock and they state that the deceased "fell off the back of the boat and cracked her head on the concrete river bank" - if they mean the River Cherwell, that would have been some achievement.

 

You just cannot believe all you read in the papers!

 

And, I have just noticed that they have moved Broadmoor Lock to "the Old Wharf in Cropredy, near Banbury." and they cannot even spell 'Broadmoor ' . . .

 

I suspect that 'the Old Wharf' was an address used by the emergency services as a location where they could get road access.

 

Well it is the Daily Mail.

[journeyperson]

How many of us shut one of the gates in a narrow lock and make that big step across to the other side? I know I do it!

 

Yes, I do too, but it is the most deliberate thing I do when at a lock; pause, focus and step. It will be some other manoeuvre that will be my downfall. As someone has already said, life is hazardous.

[Chertsey]

Whatever sort of stern it was, if a bump caused her to fall off the back, then she clearly had not been instructed how to steer from a safe position. A trad stern is safer than a cruiser stern provide you stand in the right place.