Two narrowboats jammed in tunnel

TWO narrowboats jammed in a tunnel needed emergency services to rescue the crews..

Each of two narrowboats entered the narrow Barton Tunnel on the Trent & Mersey from opposite ends, struck in the middle at speed and became jammed, Michael Daine reports.

Fire and rescue service

It required the Cheshire Fire Service and a water incident unit to attend and the services of a doctor to confirm that there were no serious injuries to any of the occupants.

The fire people went into the tunnel to confirm that all was safe, then the rescue people entered the tunnel to rescue the two crews and a dog.  It is understood that they were hire boaters, with the crews abandoning their holidays after the traumatic event and returning home.

Not wide enough to pass

Barton Tunnel is just past the Anderton Boat Lift towards the Bridgewater and being on a narrow canal the tunnel is obviously not wide enough for boats to pass.  The tunnel is not controlled by lights but there is a line of sight.

The emergency services were on site for just under two hours, but left the boats to be handled by Canal & River Trust.