It was no water taxi

PERHAPS one taxi driver had been reading too much about water taxis, for he drove his own into the Caldon Canal, but alas it did not float.

He must have been going at a fair pace as he landed in the middle just outside Castro's Restaurant in Chedderton, where it is stated he was waiting for a fare, Alan Tilbury tells us.

Virtually submerged

Away from the edge the canal is of course quite deep, and the driver was having difficulty getting out, but a local man waded in and helped the luckless driver from his virtually submerged Toyota Avensis.

Then the emergency teams arrived—ambulance service, fire service and police, with flashing lights everywhere, and discovered the submerged vehicle, but of course it was by then empty.

Lifted out

Eventually a crane was brought in and the taxi lifted out, with water cascading from the vehicle, which alas could no longer be driven.

It is not known how a driver waiting for a fare could have been travelling at such a speed as to land in the middle of the waterway.