teddington_lock
Well-Known Member
I wasn't on duty ( or even in the area ) but i was called by a friend ( ex Teddington L.O.M )to tell me about something that happened earlier that evening in Teddington Weirstream.
Apparently there was an old wooden liveaboard heading past the lock , up the weirstream ( red boards , 9 gates open ) and something happened , not sure what that caused them to need to get a rope out quickly.
They got a stern rope to the pontoon outside of a block of flats there , but the current swiftly spun them round and in the process and tore the whole stern off the boat which then started to sink rather rapidly.
Both people ended up in the water , one holding a cat , a second cat had taken refuge on the saddle of the motorbike strapped to the front deck of the rapidly disappearing boat.
The ex-L.O.M. phoned London Coastguard and requested a launch of Teddington Lifeboat , which duly launched ( 100 metres away ) and managed to pluck both people , one cat and then the other from the motorbike saddle.
Meanwhile the wreckage of the boat was settling against the front of the pontoons outside the Wharf development , so the lifeboat crew managed to get their tractor that they launch the lifeboat with into Manor Road park and get a line onto the wreck and pull it away from the pontoons and boats , it is currently lashed up against the wall of Manor Road rec.
Best thing is that there was no loss of life , human or feline , but i guess these chaps have lost everything. The PLA were recovering the larger bits of wreckage for some time apparently.
I will try and speak to the lifeboat crew , as i gather some of them took some pictures while on the job.
Goes to show how quickly things can happen when on red boards , and how quickly things can get out of control.
Apparently there was an old wooden liveaboard heading past the lock , up the weirstream ( red boards , 9 gates open ) and something happened , not sure what that caused them to need to get a rope out quickly.
They got a stern rope to the pontoon outside of a block of flats there , but the current swiftly spun them round and in the process and tore the whole stern off the boat which then started to sink rather rapidly.
Both people ended up in the water , one holding a cat , a second cat had taken refuge on the saddle of the motorbike strapped to the front deck of the rapidly disappearing boat.
The ex-L.O.M. phoned London Coastguard and requested a launch of Teddington Lifeboat , which duly launched ( 100 metres away ) and managed to pluck both people , one cat and then the other from the motorbike saddle.
Meanwhile the wreckage of the boat was settling against the front of the pontoons outside the Wharf development , so the lifeboat crew managed to get their tractor that they launch the lifeboat with into Manor Road park and get a line onto the wreck and pull it away from the pontoons and boats , it is currently lashed up against the wall of Manor Road rec.
Best thing is that there was no loss of life , human or feline , but i guess these chaps have lost everything. The PLA were recovering the larger bits of wreckage for some time apparently.
I will try and speak to the lifeboat crew , as i gather some of them took some pictures while on the job.
Goes to show how quickly things can happen when on red boards , and how quickly things can get out of control.
Wow , thats some history lost . 
