Trent & Mersey re-opens today

THE breach at Dutton on the Trent & Mersey Canal is now fully repaired, re-watered and tested, and will be re-opened today, Thursday.

It was in September of last year that the major breach occurred, (Trent & Mersey closed) with the collapse of the 200 years old embankment, that was washed away by an estimated 24 million litres of water.

Not happen again

This left a massive hole in the waterway, and the repair needed 12,000 tonnes of stone and a special lining to make sure it will not happen again.

The cost of the repair was over £2m, with £25,000 being contributed via donations from the public.

Prolonged rainfall

It is believed that the canal embankment became unstable as a result of prolonged rainfall during autumn of last year, which affected embankments around the country. The British Geological Society reported that landslips in the UK increased four to five fold between July and December 2012 compared to previous years.

The Dutton breach saw water flood into a nearby farmer's field, leaving a 40 metre hole in the canal embankment which shut the waterway and its towpath for over seven months.

New drainage

To guard against a repeat of the failure, the Trust has installed new drainage at the base of the embankment to help disperse excess ground water and a specialist flexible waterproof liner has been fitted to seal the canal.

Vince Moran, operations director for the Canal & River Trust, explains:

"We're delighted to be re-opening this section of the Trent & Mersey Canal ahead of schedule and in time for the main boating season. Fortunately this kind of incident is rare, and we've gone to great lengths to restore the embankment and protect it from this sort of failure in the future."

There are reports of boaters heading once again up the Trent & Mersey Canal, a gateway to the Lancashire and Yorkshire Canals, and others waiting to come down from the Bridgewater onto the system.