Displaying items by tag: Thames

24th July 2022

Warnings of Low Water Levels Across Inland Waterways in Scotland and England

Boaters looking to cruise the inland waterways of Scotland and England are advised of low water levels in canals and rivers across Great Britain.

The Canal & River Trust, Environment Agency and Scottish Canals have recently circulated updates to all boaters warning of low water levels in parts of Scotland, the north of England and the Thames.

Having already closed some locks temporarily and introduced reduced operating times in place on several other waterways, the Canal & River Trust is taking action to manage the very low water levels in the north of England.

However, it says further difficult decisions are now needed to conserve water. It is reported that additional temporary closures will be needed in August unless there is a significant improvement in water levels.

A combination of a dry spring that has continued into a hot, dry summer and essential reservoir repairs taking place across the region meant that the amount of available water was already less than usual, causing water supplies in the north to drop to historically low levels.

Although water management has been operation in some locations since the start of April and despite volunteer lock keepers helping to manage boat traffic at lock flights to ensure water supplies are used as efficiently as possible, the lack of rain has meant the reservoirs have not had a chance to refill and there is not enough water to supply the canals, the trust says.

It is now asking boaters across the country, with the help of volunteer lock keepers, to be even more careful than usual to conserve water. Boaters can help by sharing locks where possible and making sure paddles are fully closed after use.

To find out about stoppages and water levels affecting navigation, visit the Canal and River Trust website.

In Scotland, water reserves are also coming under pressure on the Lowland Canals with leakage issues through and around a number of historic lock gates on the Forth & Clyde Canal, compounding the issue.

The Scottish Canals operational team says it is struggling to maintain water levels at a number of locations, in particular on the eastern side of the canal between Lock 16, Camelon and The Kelpies.

All unnecessary trips through the Falkirk flight are currently being restricted, since noon last Tuesday 19 July. This will affect mainly holiday hire boats and leisure boats visiting The Kelpies for an overnight stay. Sea-to-sea transits will be maintained and should be booked through the boat movements team as normal. Scottish Canals says the restriction will be lifted as soon as it is safe to do so.

 Water levels are also a concern in England’s southeast, with the Environment Agency asking users of the non-tidal Thames to make sure locks are as full as possible when used to save water.

Some parts of the upper Thames are already experiencing very low flows, especially in backwaters and tributaries. Above Iffley Lock the agency cannot guarantee the navigation channel will always be sufficiently deep for craft with a draft of 0.9m or more. And it warns that it may become necessary to close locks outside of normal lock-keeper hours of duty.

The aim is to avoid emptying locks unless they contain at least one boat as a considerable volume of water is released downstream each time a lock is used, the EA says. It is also encouraging boaters to plan ahead to minimise the use of locks along their journey.

See the ‘Information for boaters’ section of the EA website for updates, and subscribe to get advised of any Thames river restrictions and closures by emailing [email protected].

The RYA adds that there are expected to be further warnings for low water levels in these and other areas in the coming weeks. Boaters using the inland waterways are encouraged to plan ahead and to check local water reports before travel.

Published in Inland Waterways

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11th September 2016

Passenger Boat With Engine on Fire Crashes into Pier at Canary Wharf

The boat crashed into the pier with 148 people on board

A passenger boat with 148 people on board has crashed into a pier on the River Thames with its engine on fire.

Dramatic footage (below) showed the pleasure boat hit a wooden pier at Canary Wharf with smoke billowing from the stern.

Emergency services were alerted to the incident shortly after 4pm, and although three people were checked at the scene none were injured.

Published in News Update

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Thames

25th March 2015

RIB Firm & Trinity House Offers 'Blast' Packages on The River Thames

Trinity House, the elegant UK working home of the General Lighthouse Authority opposite the historic Tower of London on Tower Hill, has teamed up with caterers and the powerboat charter company, Solent Rib Charter, to offer bookers an exciting senior corporate management team building package incorporating a light breakfast followed by a thrilling 'Thames Rib Blast' on the River. The Ribs can accommodate up to eight guests per boat and while the duration of the ride is flexible, most opt for a two-hour 'Blast' through Central London and/or to the Thames Barrier and back. Participants then return to the House for a first-rate champagne lunch catered by palette. Delegates will be welcome to leave personal items/luggage at the House while on the River.

The 'Blast' package is charged at a (non-negotiable) £1,988 + VAT (i.e. £248.50 per person at full capacity) per boat and includes exclusive venue hire and the two - three hour Thames River 'Blast' (irrespective of final numbers). The breakfast and post-Blast lunch is charged separately starting from an additional £167 + VAT per person for a minimum of eight participants. (Fewer numbers can be catered for a slightly increased charge).

Following a light continental breakfast, participants make the short walk to St. Katherine's Dock passing the moat of the Tower of London where the memorial Poppies were so spectacularly displayed. After donning protective clothing - guests are provided with breathable oilskins for warmth - guests will embark on a Rib for a morning of high-speed thrills (but no spills) zipping past some of the City's most famous river-side buildings such as the Houses of Parliament, London Eye, The Shard, and Old Billingsgate etc. The Ribs operate in even the most choppy and chilly conditions and can be seen on the River all year round. A celebratory lunch comprising seasonal items (such as Basil Panna Cotta to start followed by Gressingham Duck Breast as a main with Elderflower Tart for dessert) with accompanying wines and/or champagnes served by uniformed staff will be waiting the triumphant team on return to the House, rounding off an unforgettable half day on the Thames.

All bookings are subject to availability and general booking terms and conditions of Trinity House, Solent Rib Charters, and Palette.

Published in RIBs

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5th June 2014

Nine Injured In Thames Cruise Collision

#TowerBridge - BBC News reports of nine people injured after a sightseeing boat crashed into Tower Bridge on the River Thames in central London yesterday morning (Wednesday 4 June).

Five were hospitalised after the included, including a 64-year-old woman believed to have suffered head and pelvic injuries when she fell down steel steps in the collision.

Two more were checked on scene by paramedics and given the all clear, while two others made their own way to get treatment.

The vessel in question, the Millennium Diamond, continued after the crash with only minor damage sustained to St Katharine Docks just east of Tower Bridge, where emergency crews took the injured ashore.

Mail Online has more on the story including images from the scene HERE.

Published in News Update

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11th February 2011

Uk Coastguard Announces Public Meeetings to Discuss Modernising Service

The UKs Maritime and Coastguard Agency today have announced a series of public meetings concerning the proposed Coastguard modernisation programme. The dates and venues for these meetings are listed below.

The purpose of the meeting is to provide an opportunity for the local communities around the existing Maritime Rescue Coordination Centres (MRCCs) to hear more about the proposals, ask questions of MCA representatives and have the opportunity to express their views.

Each meeting will be independently chaired and will begin at 7:30pm, expecting to draw to a close by 9pm.

Humber - Monday, 21 February 2011, The Spa, South Marine Drive, Bridlington, East Yorkshire. YO15 3JH

Thames - Tuesday 22 February 2011, Columbine Centre, Princes Esplanade, Walton on the Naze, Essex. CO148PZ

Yarmouth - Wednesday 23 February 2011, Great Yarmouth Town Hall, Hall Plain, Great Yarmouth, Norfolk. NR30 2QF

Aberdeen - Wednesday, 23 February 2011, Pittodrie Stadium, Pittodrie Street, Aberdeen. AB24 5QH

Forth - Thursday, 24 February 2011, Waid Academy, St Andrews Road, Anstruther, Fife. KV10 3 HD

Dover – Thursday, 24 February 2011, Dover Town Hall, Biggin Street, Dover, Kent. CT16 1DL

Shetland - Monday, 28 February 2011, Town Hall, Upper Hillhead, Lerwick, Shetland. ZE1 0HB

Stornoway - Tuesday, 1 March 2011, Nicholson Institute, Springfield Road, Stornoway. HS1 2PZ

Solent - Tuesday 1 March 2011, Thorngate Halls (Community Centre), Thorngate Halls, Bury House, Bury Road, Gosport, Hampshire. PO12 3PX

Holyhead - Wednesday, 2 March 2011, Holyhead High School, Alderley Terrace, Holyhead, Gwynedd, Isle of Anglesey. LL65 1NP

Clyde - Wednesday 2 March 2011, Port Glasgow Town Hall, 35 King Street, Port Glasgow. PA14 5HD

Belfast - Thursday, 3 March 2010, Marine Court Hotel, 18-20 Quay Street, Bangor. BT20 5ED

Liverpool – Thursday, 3 March 2011, Southport Convention Centre, The Promenade, Southport. PR9 0DZ

Milford Haven – Friday, 4 March 2011, Cleddau Bridge Hotel, Essex Road, Pembroke Dock. SA72 6EG

Swansea – Monday, 7 March 2011, Marriott Hotel, Maritime Quarter, Swansea. SA1 3SS

Portland - Tuesday, 8 March 2011, All Saints Church of England School, Sunnyside Road, Wyke Regis, Weymouth. Dorset, DT49BJ

Falmouth – Wednesday 9 March 2011, Tremough Campus, Treliever Road, Penryn, Cornwall. TR10 9EZ

Brixham - Thursday, 10 March 2011, Brixham College, Higher Ranscombe Road, Brixham. TQ5 9HF

Kirkwall - Tuesday, 15 March 2011, Town Hall, Broad Street, Kirkwall. KW15 1DH

Ullapool – Wednesday, 16 March 2011, Macphail Centre, Mill Street, Ullapool, Ross-shire. IV26 2UN

The details of these proposals, together with the consultation documents, can be found on the MCA website at www.mcga.gov.uk.

Published in Coastguard

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Changing Ocean Climate

Our ocean and climate are inextricably linked - the ocean plays a crucial role in the global climate system in a number of ways. These include absorbing excess heat from the atmosphere and absorbing 30 per cent of the carbon dioxide added to the atmosphere by human activity. But our marine ecosystems are coming under increasing pressure due to climate change.

The Marine Institute, with its national and international partners, works to observe and understand how our ocean is changing and analyses, models and projects the impacts of our changing oceans. Advice and forecasting projections of our changing oceans and climate are essential to create effective policies and management decisions to safeguard our ocean.

Dr Paul Connolly, CEO of the Marine Institute, said, “Our ocean is fundamental to life on earth and affects so many facets of our everyday activities. One of the greatest challenges we face as a society is that of our changing climate. The strong international collaborations that the Marine Institute has built up over decades facilitates a shared focusing on our changing ocean climate and developing new and enhanced ways of monitoring it and tracking changes over time.

“Our knowledge and services help us to observe these patterns of change and identify the steps to safeguard our marine ecosystems for future generations.”

The Marine Institute’s annual ocean climate research survey, which has been running since 2004, facilitates long term monitoring of the deep water environment to the west of Ireland. This repeat survey, which takes place on board RV Celtic Explorer, enables scientists to establish baseline oceanic conditions in Irish waters that can be used as a benchmark for future changes.

Scientists collect data on temperature, salinity, water currents, oxygen and carbon dioxide in the Atlantic Ocean. This high quality oceanographic data contributes to the Atlantic Ocean Observing System. Physical oceanographic data from the survey is submitted to the International Council for the Exploration of the Seas (ICES) and, in addition, the survey contributes to national research such as the VOCAB ocean acidification and biogeochemistry project, the ‘Clean Atlantic’ project on marine litter and the A4 marine climate change project.

Dr Caroline Cusack, who co-ordinates scientific activities on board the RV Celtic Explorer for the annual survey, said, “The generation of long-term series to monitor ocean climate is vital to allow us understand the likely impact of future changes in ocean climate on ecosystems and other marine resources.”

Other activities during the survey in 2019 included the deployment of oceanographic gliders, two Argo floats (Ireland’s contribution to EuroArgo) and four surface drifters (Interreg Atlantic Area Clean Atlantic project). The new Argo floats have the capacity to measure dissolved ocean and biogeochemical parameters from the ocean surface down to a depth of 2,000 metres continuously for up to four years, providing important information as to the health of our oceans.

During the 2019 survey, the RV Celtic Explorer retrieved a string of oceanographic sensors from the deep ocean at an adjacent subsurface moored station and deployed a replacement M6 weather buoy, as part of the Irish Marine Data Buoy Observation Network (IMDBON).

Funded by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, the IMDBON is managed by the Marine Institute in collaboration with Met Éireann and is designed to improve weather forecasts and safety at sea around Ireland. The data buoys have instruments which collect weather and ocean data including wind speed and direction, pressure, air and sea surface temperature and wave statistics. This data provides vital information for weather forecasts, shipping bulletins, gale and swell warnings as well as data for general public information and research.

“It is only in the last 20 years, meteorologists and climatologists have really began to understood the pivotal role the ocean plays in determining our climate and weather,” said Evelyn Cusack, Head of Forecasting at Met Éireann. “The real-time information provided by the Irish data buoy network is particularly important for our mariners and rescue services. The M6 data buoy in the Atlantic provides vital information on swell waves generated by Atlantic storms. Even though the weather and winds may be calm around our shores, there could be some very high swells coming in from Atlantic storms.”