Plea to help canal breach firms

The scene after the Brecon and Monmouthshire canal burst

Businesses affected by the closure of part of the Monmouthshire and Brecon canal are appealing for compensation for any loss of income.

A 16-mile stretch will be out of use until next March after the canal burst its banks at Gilwern, near Abergavenny.

British Waterways has emptied the section between Llanover and Talybont to carry out repair work.

It said it was doing what it could to help and its loss adjusters were working on a compensation package.

Monmouthshire councillor Simon Howarth says people who rely on the canal for their livelihood should be compensated.

Eight people were rescued, three homes were evacuated and the A4077 between Crickhowell and Gilwern was closed for a week after the 200-year-old canal breached on 16 October.

Initial checks by British Waterways suggested that erosion caused the breach and it announced its intention to carry out a complete geo-technical assessment of the canal.

You're talking a mammoth task to bring canals up to a standard Councillor Simon Howarth

But local businesses say they are concerned the closure will badly affect their takings.

Sue Ware, who runs Country Craft Narrow Boats with her husband Phil, said: "We were anticipating a very good year in 2008. We had more advanced bookings for the year ahead than we had ever had. And obviously a lot of those have had to be cancelled."

Pavel Vitek, who runs Ty Croeso hotel and restaurant, Crickhowell, said he had already enquired about compensation.

"Immediately after the breach that happened, it was quite obvious that the canal would be affected for a long time," he said.

"We have written to British Waterways asking about the possibility for compensation for the loss of business. Unfortunately, the reply has been fairly negative so at the moment I don't quite know what we shall do."

Improve safety

British Waterways said it is doing what it can to help and its loss adjusters are working on a compensation package.

Mr Howarth, an independent councillor who represents Gilwern, is also calling for assurances that another breach will not happen again in the future.

"We're talking here probably over 200 years of repairs really which have been a quick fix [in the past]," he told BBC Radio Wales' Country Focus programme.

"Investment hasn't happened. You're talking a mammoth task to bring canals up to a standard but that has to be adhered to."

British Waterways' Mark Durham, who is project manager for the Gilwern repairs, denied there had been a lack of investment in the canal and said the work they were currently doing would improve safety.

He said: "Any area that presents British Waterways with an unacceptable risk, be it to the public, then we will address those areas."