Keeping drunks away from drowning in Manchester

THERE is one way to keep drunks turning out of the many bars by the Rochdale Nine in Manchester and staggering into the canal and drowning—closing it off!

This is exactly what the authorities have done with the towpath by the many bars by the canal being locked off at night following the many deaths by drunks either lurching into the waterway or attempting to cross lock beams and the like and falling in and drowning.

Incapable

It is obvious that those people are incapable of looking after themselves so they will be locked out from going anywhere near the canal, for their own safety.

The above picture is of Canal Street before drunks started climbing the wall onto the canal towpath with the the one below showing the fence that was erected by the Queer bar in an attempt to stop them, that obviously failed.

The father of Nick Pope who fell in and drowned tells: "You've got to protect people from themselves."

Someone else's responsibility

Yet as our Keith Gudgin remarks, and to which we agree, surely people should protect themselves from themselves, does his father not have any feeling of responsibility for not teaching him how to behave and look after himself or does he think it's always someone else’s responsibility?

So the area by Canal Street and the bars will have gates on the towpath that will be locked after 10pm to prevent people falling into the canal, which as far as users of the waterway are concerned is surely better than fencing the whole canal off as has often been suggested.

Perhaps this will at last see the end of the senseless drowing of people who are unable to look after themselves.