The Grand Western Canal has reopened following a major breach – with two months to spare before a trailboat rally to mark its 200th anniversary.
The isolated West Country waterway was cut in two when part of a 60ft high embankment near Halberton was washed away in November 2012. But thanks to £3m of support from the canal’s owners Devon County Council, the canal has not only been completely repaired but benefited from some extra works to make a recurrence less likely including raising the banks and installing a water level monitoring system.
Councillor Bernard Hughes, DCC Chairman and also a boater and Waterway Recovery Group volunteer, is seen cutting the tape to declare the repaired canal open, in time for the Inland Waterways Association’s National Trailboat Festival to mark the canal’s bicentenary on the 24-26 May Bank Holiday weekend. Click here for more information
