'I didn't even have time to put my teeth in!' Boater tells of dash to safety after catastrophic canal collapse in the Midlands
A canal boat resident has told of his hasty dash to safety after a huge hole opened up on the waterway - "like something out of a horror film".
Mick Thomas, originally from Dawley, Telford, has been a continuous cruiser living on a canal boat for the past three years.
The 67-year-old had his boat moored just up from the site of a giant embankment collapse on the Llangollen Canal in Whitchurch. The collapse in the early hours of Monday (December 22) created a 50-metre hole and swallowed two boats, leaving another teetering on the edge of the giant chasm.
After being alerted to the potential disaster Mr Thomas was amongst 15 people evacuated from boats surrounding the collapse.
He told the Shropshire Star he had been made aware of the emergency by someone banging on his boat and barely had time to get dressed, let alone grab any belongings before evacuating.
