'People offered us Christmas dinner': Canal boat owner caught up in Whitchurch catastrophe hails generosity of strangers as fundraiser tops £85k
An artist whose narrowboat home was caught up in the Whitchurch canal catastrophe says he and his family have been "blown away" by the generosity of strangers, as a fundraiser set up to support those affected surpasses £85,000.
Paul Stowe saw his and his family's lives turned upside down just days before Christmas when a 50m hole opened up on the Llangollen Canal in Whitchurch.
The catastrophic failure led to a breach which swallowed two canal boats and left Mr Stowe's home 'Pacemaker' teetering on the edge.
The boat has been pulled clear in the days following the December 22 disaster, but is uninhabitable, leaving Mr Stowe and his family with little certainty over the future.
They have since been staying in temporary accommodation on a boat at Cheshire Cat Narrowboat Holidays.
Amidst the uncertainty over the future a GoFundMe fundraiser set up to support Mr Stowe and the owners of the other two boats involved in the disaster has now surpassed £85,000, with donations from across the world.
