Chichester canal boats get some TLC

The volunteers, who work on behalf of the Chichester Ship Canal Trust conduct inspections on the boats every two years but, with the 200th anniversary of the canal looming, this year they took extra care to ensure all the vessels were as spick and span as possible.

Since the ships carry passengers, they must be inspected at least once every two years. This year it was the Kingfisher' s turn to be lifted out of the water and restored.

But things didn't stop there, volunteer director Ian Jackson said staff also lifted another three boats out of the water: "Frisky, a 1950’s built tug was removed to repair her prop shaft; Cygnet, a fibre glass work boat required some much needed TLC and finally the canal’s newly acquired 1960’s built tug was moved to the water after having its hull restored and repainted by canal volunteers," he said.

Although preparations for the 200 year anniversary have been ongoing since Christmas, the lifts took place on January 5 (Wednesday). It was conducted by Houssen's Cranes, a specialist company in Hampshire which uses massive 160 tonne cranes to get the job done.

"The Trust ensured that there were two experienced volunteers on hand to make sure any question they had were answered," Ian continued.

"The boat lifts created a lot of interest and members of the public stopped to watch the work as it was happening. Many took photos. Because using a crane to move boats off and on to the basin is dangerous work, canal volunteers were on hand to make sure the spectators were safe."