Thanks given to 'true community heroes' who volunteered to clear near-impassable Market Drayton canal path
Civic leaders in Market Drayton have paid homage to "hero" canal volunteers who gave up their time to clear mud at a "near-impassable" towpath.
Canal volunteers worked throughout last Friday and Saturday (July 18 and 19) to remove thick and wet mud from the towpath along the deep cutting at Tyrley Lock.
Volunteers removed mud down to the original stone path level, leaving it passable for both walkers and bikers.
In a post on social media, Market Drayton Town Council said it wanted to extend a "big thank you" to everybody who took part.
The Mayor of Market Drayton, Councillor Tim Manton, expressed his gratitude for their efforts.
He said: "They are true community heroes in the truest sense.
"Our canal in Market Drayton is a particular draw for visitors and tourists. It bodes well to have a well-presented canal-side towpath, and the work that the canal volunteers do speaks volumes about Market Drayton.
"The hard work that they do to make the area presentable for visitors arriving by boat is fantastic. What is more fantastic about the work they have been doing at the Tyrley Lock is that for as long as I have been a councillor, that stretch of towpath has been, and I don’t say this lightly, almost impassable.
"It has been a nightmare. There has been really deep mud there, it’s really difficult to walk there.
"It was nigh-on impossible for people with pushchairs to get through, so fair play to the volunteers.They have gone up there with an army of volunteers there with their shovels in hand and shovelled all the mud off the tow path for it to be taken away.
"They’ve opened up a section of canal path that would have been otherwise very difficult to navigate. So fantastic work, it’s wonderful and hats off to them."
