Fish removed from Bath canal for lock repairs

Hundreds of fish are to be removed from part of the Kennet and Avon Canal for repairs to be carried out.

The Canal & River Trust is completing work on locks seven to 13 on Bath Flight, which includes the second deepest lock in the country.

Sections of the canal need to be drained of water in order to complete the work.

The fish will be stunned with an electric pulse, netted and re-homed on another section of the canal.

Robert Eaton, project manager at the trust, said: "Bath Flight is right in the heart of the city and hugely popular, with thousands of people visiting it each year.

"Every winter we carry out essential maintenance work on the canals and rivers and in this case some of the lock gates are in need of a bit of TLC.

"It is quite an extensive operation, but one we are well used to dealing with.

"Our specialist fish rescue contractors use a low electric pulse which stuns the fish. They are then netted and moved to a safe part of the canal."

Following the fish rescue, the repair work will take place on Bath Flight which begins just over Halfpenny Bridge behind the train station.

The fish rescue begins on Thursday and will be completed this week. The lock repairs are expected to be complete by the middle of March.