How Can You Do This By Accident ?

[Canary42]

Can somebody explain to me how you can get through a canal lock without closing one set of paddles before exit (the upper set if locking down, the lower set if locking up).

Opening both must surely be a malicious act.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-wiltshire-44869566

[webbo3]

Waterboatman will know the answer to this.

[wolf63]

I would have thought that if it was such an easy mistake to make then it would have been done before.

[Mamyalynne]

Not sure why the Trust would say it was not malicious if it was Canary.

[Baldric]

Enter Lock, close gates behind you but you forget paddles and leave them open.
Now go to gates in front of you, open the paddles and you now have a free-flow of water from highest to lowest, 'easy' mistake to make.

[Canary42]

But you can't get out Baldric because the level will never change.

[Canary42]

/// Not sure why the Trust would say it was not malicious if it was Canary.///

That puzzled me too.

[Baldric]

I didn't say you could/couldn't get out, just suggested how it could've happened.

[woofgang]

it has been done before in other places but not often.....you would have to be on your own, so no one to notice and stop you. and, as they said, in a hurry.....but I bet whoever did it won't do it again.

[Canary42]

Giving it some more thought, you could fail to close one paddle in the entry gates completely if "in a hurry" but the flow from the exit gate paddles would be sufficiently larger to change the levels. I guess that's what happened.

[Hopkirk]

Yes, perhaps do it once on one lock, but leaving all of them open?

I suspect a bit of dementia involved.

[woofgang]

Hopkirk it was only one section so possibly only one lock

[Baldric]

/// A boater accidentally drained a stretch of the Kennet and Avon Canal after leaving all the lock gates open ///

[DTCwordfan]

Over to Boaty to explain what he has been up to - has he been out there today?

[Canary42]

///Hopkirk it was only one section so possibly only one lock///

Certainly not the Caen flight - totally derelict when I lived in the area in the 70s -- now beautifully restored.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caen_Hill_Locks

[DTCwordfan]

However, if Boaty did happen do this, he would drain the Severn dry.....tidal bore or not.

[Hopkirk]

Seems it was just one lock - lock 18

http://www.gazetteandherald.co.uk/news/16362858.canal-drains-as-boater-leaves-paddles-up/