EA is failing in its responsobilities regarding lock starcases.

[Hadenough]

I have just had an accident at a lock of which I do not want to identify as the keeper took my details and was very professional in dealing with my complaint and I thank him for his attention. The accident was not caused by him but the failings of EA.

I was passing through the lock after hours and as I descended a slimy staircase with an equally slimy handrail I slipped, flat on my back and ended up with slime all over my clothes and a nasty cut on my elbow. Should any infection ensue I will be putting in the hands of my solicitor and I am sure she will have a field day with this one!

In the conversation with the lock keeper he suggested I should have been wearing boating shoes. Rubbish! No doubt it was what he was told to say.

HEALTH AND SAFETY! Staircases should not be allowed to be slippery and that goes for handrails.

I am retired now but where I used to work HSE would have thrown the book at EA's attitude to safety.

Whilst I understand that the cleaning of lock walls had an environmentally downside, the safety aspect of lock staircases should not be ignored.

I intend to write to EA in the near future with regards to this subject and I would urge anybody else to do so.

Bearing in mind that you were descending a known 'Slimey' staircase, did you carry out and record a risk assessment of the hazard? No? Well tough luck FFS.

 

[oldgit]

Sheppey Mud.

Shortly before the dinosaurs became extinct was in bit of hurry to moor a boat on a tidal mud mooring .
Essentially, get it right first time or 12 mile trudge elsewhere or 4 hour wait for water.
Boat drawing 3 ft was being persuaded to moor in about 2.5 ft of water.
Managed to get the bow in and pick up forward bouy rope.
Somewhere on the scramble aft to secure stern line, took a slow motion tumble over the side.
Was expecting a bracing dip, actually got a very aromatic mud bath.
No change of clothes aboard, so a long row back to shore, followed by a very squelchy drive home.
Spent following day cleaning boat,dinghy and car but not probably in that order.

Anybody better that ?

 

[boatone]

Re: Sheppey Mud.

Shortly before the dinosaurs became extinct was in bit of hurry to moor a boat on a tidal mud mooring .
Essentially, get it right first time or 12 mile trudge elsewhere or 4 hour wait for water.
Boat drawing 3 ft was being persuaded to moor in about 2.5 ft of water.
Managed to get the bow in and pick up forward bouy rope.
Somewhere on the scramble aft to secure stern line, took a slow motion tumble over the side.
Was expecting a bracing dip, actually got a very aromatic mud bath.
No change of clothes aboard, so a long row back to shore, followed by a very squelchy drive home.
Spent following day cleaning boat,dinghy and car but not probably in that order.

Anybody better that ?

Would be interested to know how you managed to get back on board or reach other safety.
My limited but scary experience of man overboard was the stark realisation of just how difficult it is to recover someone. Man overboard exercises with a fender or whatever do nothing to prepare you for recovering the deadweight of a human adult body even with a competent crew

 

[Actionmat]

Re: Sheppey Mud.

I certainly can't better your story, but I did make the mistake of answering a text while walking back to my boat on a freezing cold January evening, only to walk straight off the end of the pontoon and head first into the Thames. No change of clothes, so a drive home wearing nothing but wet underpants.

 

[CLB]

Re: Sheppey Mud.

Would be interested to know how you managed to get back on board or reach other safety.
My limited but scary experience of man overboard was the stark realisation of just how difficult it is to recover someone. Man overboard exercises with a fender or whatever do nothing to prepare you for recovering the deadweight of a human adult body even with a competent crew

I came across a guy in the Solent once, clinging to the last of his boat's bow as it dipped below the water. We got hold of him off the bathing platform, there were two of us onboard, but simply could not bring him onboard. He was a big fella, had no lifejacket and only sloppy jogging bottoms and t shirt, so nothing substantial to get hold of. In the end I had to drag him to the bathing ladder and lower it so he could climb out himself. Had he been too weak, or even unconscious, we would never have got him out of the water. A sobering lesson for me having done many a "man overboard" excersise on RYA course using a fender.

 

[oldgit]

Re: Sheppey Mud.

Would be interested to know how you managed to get back on board or reach other safety.
My limited but scary experience of man overboard was the stark realisation of just how difficult it is to recover someone. Man overboard exercises with a fender or whatever do nothing to prepare you for recovering the deadweight of a human adult body even with a competent crew

a slow slurpy walk in 18" of sludgy mud helpfully lubricated by 6" of muddy Medway while clinging onto fenders, round to back of boat and the swim platform !
Due to hole created by hull in mudberth, platform close to surface ladder easily lowered..

Next question!

 

[Old Crusty]

Re: Sheppey Mud.

Having refreshed myself in some dozen pubs in Dartmouth one evening, I dropped my wallet in the boatfloat at low tide. I scrambled down the iron ladder and retrieved said wallet but being overly refreshed and now covered in silt, I could get back up the ladder. So I crawled across to the slipway and got out. Later I fell asleep in on a bench in Coronation Park then awoke at dawn and returned to my cabin, minging, caked in dry foul mud.

 

[oldgit]

Re: Sheppey Mud.

caked in dry foul mud.

Some ladies of leisure pay good money for that particular beauty treatment ...

 

[No Regrets]

Re: Sheppey Mud.

Some ladies of leisure pay good money for that particular beauty treatment ...

Most ladies prefer a Pearl necklace

 

[No Regrets]

Re: Sheppey Mud.

Having refreshed myself in some dozen pubs in Dartmouth one evening, I dropped my wallet in the boatfloat at low tide. I scrambled down the iron ladder and retrieved said wallet but being overly refreshed and now covered in silt, I could get back up the ladder. So I crawled across to the slipway and got out. Later I fell asleep in on a bench in Coronation Park then awoke at dawn and returned to my cabin, minging, caked in dry foul mud.

A normal night for you then :encouragement: Look on the bright side, it's easier to get rid of dry mud (earth?) than wet mushy stuff.

 

[Little Dipper]

Just looked back at my post from back in 2018. Thanks for all the replies, helpful, sarcy (to be expected from this lot) and the usual spam off topic replies.

You will all be pleased to know that I have taken my boat away from the Thames permanently since then because of this incident. Some may say "good" but ask me if I care?

The river especially the Upper Thames around Oxford and Reading where was usually found is a shadow of what it was with the dirty locks and dirty scruffy liveaboard narrowboats bunging up the moorings and landowners being forced to enforce extortionate penalties for wild moorings. I cannot blame the landowners but who wants a scruffy boat moored to your land for weeks on end with the occupants throwing rubbish all over the place? It is also debateable where the septic waste is disposed of too. Please note that I am not criticising genuine CCers who keep their boats pristine and keep moving on.

Thank you to all the old lock keepers from the time when the river was in its prime, I am sure they are not happy with the situation too. They were always a friendly helpful bunch and are sadly missed. I am aware that some of them are still around still holding the fort but their hands are unfortunately tied by EA.

 

[oldgit]

Just looked back at my post from back in 2018. Thanks for all the replies, helpful, sarcy (to be expected from this lot) and the usual spam off topic replies.

You will all be pleased to know that I have taken my boat away from the Thames permanently since then because of this incident. Some may say "good" but ask me if I care?

The river especially the Upper Thames around Oxford and Reading where was usually found is a shadow of what it was with the dirty locks and dirty scruffy liveaboard narrowboats bunging up the moorings and landowners being forced to enforce extortionate penalties for wild moorings. I cannot blame the landowners but who wants a scruffy boat moored to your land for weeks on end with the occupants throwing rubbish all over the place? It is also debateable where the septic waste is disposed of too. Please note that I am not criticising genuine CCers who keep their boats pristine and keep moving on.

Thank you to all the old lock keepers from the time when the river was in its prime, I am sure they are not happy with the situation too. They were always a friendly helpful bunch and are sadly missed. I am aware that some of them are still around still holding the fort but their hands are unfortunately tied by EA.

“It’s easy to get washed along in nostalgia, to end up overshadowed by the past, because the past is a perfect country, a place we’ve made better in our heads through selective amnesia.”
Wiki quote.

 

[Outinthedinghy]

Technically locks on the Thames should be left empty after each use. This is to prevent buildup of slime on the surfaces. Once upon a time caustic soda was used by the lock keepers for cleaning but that was a bit dodgy really.

As for actually using the stairwells well sometimes it is necessary depending on size of boat. Cast an eye over it first and if it looks rough and you are in a small boat consider a long bow rope and hauling it into or out of the chamber. Yes it's annoying taking the rope over the gate hardware but if it's not safe then it's not safe. Often one can reboard a small boat on the canoe portage side rather than the layby. When I say "small" I mean anything really if you can't get back on it. Small as in dinghy or small as in low air draft.
I'm happy bowhauling a 72ft narrow boat out of the lock if I can't get back on it using the slimy stairwells.

IF everyone did leave locks empty as they are meant to do then it seems unlikely the algae would get a chance to grow. But they don't so it does !


No rocket science here.

 

[Time Out]

I always use the stairs at Tedd as the fenders are always on the right from when I moor and often depart in a hurry to make the lock when I see it opening!

Which means

The lock keeper doesn't help as they are on the other side

Its ALWAYS very slippery for me and or my wife

It's a killer for white shorts

However, ALL of those problems are easily resolved if I just put fenders on the other side

 

[Outinthedinghy]

Teddington being tidal is slightly different but the rule is leave lock empty after use. If everyone did this during hours of public power then there would not be a problem. But they don't so there is.

Eta I am fortunate in having a boat with 6ft6 air draft which means I can do Lechlade which I did today. I experimented at Culham lock on the way up and was able to get onto the lockside without the stairs.

Ok so I am the right side of 50 and reasonably fit and the boat is a very nicely made unit for the River but I do think that people should leave locks empty anyway, for the sake of others who have less ideal boats.

Leave locks empty to avoid weed growth ! Just do it ?

 

[Time Out]

Teddington being tidal is slightly different but the rule is leave lock empty after use. If everyone did this during hours of public power then there would not be a problem. But they don't so there is.

Eta I am fortunate in having a boat with 6ft6 air draft which means I can do Lechlade which I did today. I experimented at Culham lock on the way up and was able to get onto the lockside without the stairs.

Ok so I am the right side of 50 and reasonably fit and the boat is a very nicely made unit for the River but I do think that people should leave locks empty anyway, for the sake of others who have less ideal boats.

Leave locks empty to avoid weed growth ! Just do it ?

You are indeed correct Tedd is of course different.

But as a rule I always leave the lock empty, I’m nudging the right side of 50 (the wrong side of 40!) and even as drunken teenagers heading to Henley on an all nighter we always left it empty.

 

[Outinthedinghy]

By the right side I meant below 50. By 2.5 years in my case!

Nice to hear of someone who leaves locks empty.
I suspect the advent of public power 247 has coincided with the increase in problematic stairwell algae issues.

It's been a while now but before the full time thing it was different. That includes lock keeper attitudes.

Don't forget that these people live immediately beside the locks.

Lovely place to live but...

 

[Time Out]

By the right side I meant below 50. By 2.5 years in my case!

Nice to hear of someone who leaves locks empty.
I suspect the advent of public power 247 has coincided with the increase in problematic stairwell algae issues.

We had no power in my day


But we did have a magic key for some ….


As pissed as we got we always respected the river and understood what a privilege it was to be lent a decent boat ( the parents didn’t always agree …) and enjoy two weeks away as teenagers

 

[Northern Star]

Like others I have never used a lock stair in the five years I have been on the Thames. If I had to I would take it at my own risk as it is up to me to have correct footwear and step with attention to the hazard that I put myself under as I am departing my own boat and where I land or safe footage is subject to far more conditions than where I end up placing myself due to wind, water and how near I have placed my vessel.

 

[oldgit]

Have Nitrates and Phospates washed off fields contributed to the problem ?
Perhaps the fertilizer "cordon sanitaire" on fields next to river will help.