Jump to content

Seven people rescued from canal boat on the River Trent in Shardlow

Rob_rs2000

By Rob_rs2000
in General Boating

 Share

Featured Posts

zenataomm Veteran

zenataommDonate to Canal World

Posted
Posted (edited)

When first reported the paper said it happened on the "canal" outside Shardlow marina.

Strange as the marina is not on the canal.

 

For those not in the know, here follow helpful directions.

If you carry on up the Trent (keeping your eyes averted so that you don't see the large Motorway sign telling you the canal is straight on) then turn left just before you get to Derwent Mouth lock and the beginning of The Trent & Misery and carry on as if going to Shardlow Marina. Then you're on the right track.

 

Steam merrily past the said marina and under the large road bridge bearing the A6 it's essential at this point that you totally ignore the sign proclaiming "end of navigation". I have it on good report that it's most helpful to tackle this after dark, probably around 9pm.

 

Continue about a quarter of a mile until you run out of floatingness you should then find yourself only yards from the canal and near the X on the map. It's hard to miss as Google Earth shows that there is a large X floating on the river.

 

X.jpg

 

Don't be tempted to call the Fire Brigade unless you are really sure how many people you have on board with you. It's much more sensible to call a large mobile crane to sit up on the bank, pick you up and swing you round to plonk you in the cut.

Alternatively it's cheaper, quicker and more boring to use Derwent Mouth lock.

 

On the other hand I recall about ten years ago sitting in Shardlow basin and watching a very large wide beam cruiser arrive the other side of the low bridge and spend the next hour dismantling the wheelhouse before scraping slowly through and then enquiring where Shardlow marina was.

Somebody walked them up onto the main road and pointed to it just the other side of The Navigation pub.

"How do we get the boat there?" They enquired. "We've taken on a mooring there"

 

"Remember that lock you went through? You turn left before you do that." Was the cheery answer.

Edited by zenataomm
Link to comment
Share on other sites
PeterScott Veteran II

PeterScottDonate to Canal World

Posted
Posted
Took the wrong turning maybe?
The Horse Bridge by the junction with the Trent and Mersey Canal used to be an obvious landmark to encourage boats into the canal and off the river. But now it's possible to miss the sign, and end up as these folks did. Another argument for replacing the bridge.
Link to comment
Share on other sites
MartinClark Experienced

MartinClark

Posted
Posted

What happened to the boat?

Sue

 

Yes, I want to know that. If all the crew were taken off, did they just leave the boat in the middle of the river all night?

 

If they were heading upstream when they went aground then the easiest thing to do would be to try to get back off the way they went on, but with the current helping them. At least they would have known that the way they had just come was deep enough. Trying to do a u-turn could leave leave them pinned sideways-on to a shallow patch.

 

Was it a hire boat? I don't recognise the colours but there seems to be a sheild emblem on the side and bridge bashing bars over the well deck. The lady at the Guest House said it happens every 2 years. With all the many hire boats that use the area, I'm surprised it doesn't happen every 2 weeks!

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Natalie Graham Proficient

Natalie Graham

Posted
Posted (edited)

Would be a pretty simple salvage, wouldn't it? It is a very odd story all round really. The people were on a boat in the river, more reason to rescue them if they didn't have the boat. If they were well and truly stuck could they not simply have put an anchor out in case the levels rose in the night, gone to bed, with someone getting up at intervals to check on things and then sorted it out with a call to the nearest boatyard to get someone to come and haul them off in the morning? I am still baffled as to what the fire engines were needed for, (never mind two rescue teams.) Pump more water into the river until the boat floated off?

Edited by Natalie Graham
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Athy Veteran II

AthyDonate to Canal World

Posted
Posted

To these eyes it does not look like a current hire boat, but very much like a former hire boat: Harborough Marine with bridge bars. I don't think that any current hire boats still have bridge bars, I assume because although they were a safety feature they got in the bloody way when crew were embarking and disembarking.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
MartinClark Experienced

MartinClark

Posted
Posted

The caption on the photo on page 2 of the paper's coverage says it is of the boat the next morning so presumably it was left

Ooops! I didn't see that there was a Page 2!

 

Why do newspaper sites spread stories over two pages? Oh, yes - so that they can claim to have had more impressions of the advertisements on the sites.

 

Seems reckless to leave the boat unattended all night. What if the river level had risen as a result of rain upstream? (The Trent does go up and down rather a lot in that area.) The fire engines would have been out again the next day to answer calls about a boat stranded on Sawley Weir, only to find nobody on board!

 

To these eyes it does not look like a current hire boat, but very much like a former hire boat: Harborough Marine with bridge bars. I don't think that any current hire boats still have bridge bars,

 

I thought Claymoore still did, but looking at their web site proves this to be wrong. So you are probably right to say a former hire boat.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Neil TNC Rising Star

Neil TNC

Posted
Posted

Yes, I want to know that. If all the crew were taken off, did they just leave the boat in the middle of the river all night?

 

If they were heading upstream when they went aground then the easiest thing to do would be to try to get back off the way they went on, but with the current helping them. At least they would have known that the way they had just come was deep enough. Trying to do a u-turn could leave leave them pinned sideways-on to a shallow patch.

 

Was it a hire boat? I don't recognise the colours but there seems to be a sheild emblem on the side and bridge bashing bars over the well deck. The lady at the Guest House said it happens every 2 years. With all the many hire boats that use the area, I'm surprised it doesn't happen every 2 weeks!

 

They needed you on the front with a depth pole?...looks like someone was trying a "TNC".

Mrs TNC has just commented, that they needed the Newfoundland Dog Display thingy (they rescue poeple in the water) she was "forced" to watch at Beale Park today, while I was in the beer tent / Beta Stand with Graham and Steve (bonding with my boat builder and fabricator).

We only seem to get stuck on navigable bits of the Trent. :P

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Graham Bowers Collaborator

Graham Bowers

Posted
Posted

The Horse Bridge by the junction with the Trent and Mersey Canal used to be an obvious landmark to encourage boats into the canal and off the river. But now it's possible to miss the sign, and end up as these folks did. Another argument for replacing the bridge.

There has been talk of a replacement for the horse bridge for some time now but a couple of hundred yards upstream of the old one. This weekend I saw evidence of the start of construction. Fenced off areas on both sides of the river plus a container on the non-Shardlow side.

Graham

PS saw said boat grounded on Sat morning as I was walking the dog and wondered how it had happened. It looked well aground then and with falling levels, how was it re-floated?? Tug, crane or a levitation spell??

Link to comment
Share on other sites
MartinClark Experienced

MartinClark

Posted
Posted

They needed you on the front with a depth pole?...looks like someone was trying a "TNC".

 

No - TNC always knows where it is going! It sounds as if these people had no idea where they were going.

 

PS saw said boat grounded on Sat morning as I was walking the dog and wondered how it had happened. It looked well aground then and with falling levels

 

But not as well aground as this one?

3993.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
 Share
Go to topic listing

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.