200 Ripon moorers stuck again

EARLIER this year 200 moorers at Ripon Marina were marooned in their berths for two months.

And now, just five months later having escaped, they are once again trapped and by the same lock failure as previously—Oxclose Lock (3) Keith Gudgin reports.

They are trapped

The two miles long Ripon Canal joins the Ure at Oxclose Lock giving the moorers access to the main waterway system, so when that lock is out of action they are trapped, with not even a short cruise as there are no winding holes. (Photograph by Pennine Waterways.)

It was in April this year when the lock developed sink holes and was closed for two months until July when the contractors managed to plug the hole and finally release the moorers.

Failed to notice

It is obvious that contractors failed to notice there was another sink hole developing, as this has now appeared under the downstream balance beam.

So the lock will remain empty to prevent further damage to the lock structure with, we are told, engineers being on site in the New Year, and most likely at least another two months before it is repaired, with the small consolation that it occurred during the winter months when there is not so much boating activity.

But once again it shows the folly of employing contractors to repair waterway structures instead of those people that they replaced who knew what they were doing—that is being clearly shown, time and time again.