Canal emptied after lock gates were left open



A section of the Kennet and Avon canal, stretching over 1km, emptied over the weekend when lock paddles were left open.



Eyewitness Timothy Hiss said he was surprised to find part of the canal empty when he was walking along it and witnessed “two canoeists who had to carry their canoe along the pathway, and further up the canal a long boat was going to have the tricky manoeuvre of turning the boat around.”



British Waterways sent an engineer to the canal yesterday to ensure the water level returned to normal when it was being refilled.



“We don’t think this was a malicious act but simply a mistake,” said BW spokeswoman Gill Owen. “We remind boaters using the locks to follow all the necessary steps so water does not drain out of the locks.”

More stories like this:

Hot weather shuts Britain’s longest canal

Vandals damage Oldbury canal locks

EA decides to rent out lock-keepers’ houses