‘Manchester Pusher’

Most that go through the city centre are pretty deep IIRC. The one out the back of my flats were.

Rochdale Canal | Canal & River Trust

This one in fact. You can see where it comes from the ship canal, goes through the city and out towards Rochdale etc.

Lots of locks on that though. Sure city centre ones were shallower as generally they had to be dug out and lined and they never dug out more than they needed. I could be talking utter guff mind.
 


Lots of locks on that though. Sure city centre ones were shallower as generally they had to be dug out and lined and they never dug out more than they needed. I could be talking utter guff mind.

I'm not sure to be honest. None of them are 4ft deep that I'm aware of. Although there's something between Oxford Road and Piccadilly (possibly canal) which is shallow - you can see it from the train - but I don't think you can walk by that bit
 
The problem I have with these being accidents is that there are far more canals in Amsterdam and I’d hazard a guess that people there are far more baked than they are in Manchester, and the canals are incredibly easy to fall into (I did). So therefore the Dam should have a far higher canal death rate than Manchester. If it doesn’t, what else does that suggest?
A quick Google showed me about 100 people fall into Amsterdam canals and on average 18 die annually.

Seems higher than Manchester but I'm not pissing about calculating rates.
 
The water will be colder in Manchester.

I used to do rowing at school in the river Tyne. One day I capsized and although I managed to keep hold of my boat, I couldn't even feel any of my body that was below the waterline - it was instantly numb with the cold. I'm a pretty strong swimmer but if my boat hadn't have been there for me to grab hold of I would have drowned that day as my legs just wouldn't work and presumably if my arms had gone under too then I wouldn't have been able to use those either.
The canals in Amsterdam freeze over enough for people to ski on them, the Manchester canals freeze for a few days at most in the worst conditions so it probably varies through the year.

I've lived in Manchester for 20 years now and the only discussion about a Manchester Pusher I've ever seen have been on this forum! I don't think locals are getting worked up about it although I wouldn't be surprised at all if a few were foul play, possibly not intending to kill.
 
A quick Google showed me about 100 people fall into Amsterdam canals and on average 18 die annually.

Seems higher than Manchester but I'm not pissing about calculating rates.
How do they know? That must just be ones that the authorities find out about. I just fell in and my mates fished me out. Nobody reported it, which makes me think it’s way higher. I accept that there’s more chance of being spotted in Dam though.
I remember being a student in Manchester and one of my party tricks was hanging upside down off things, one being a bridge over a canal.
Zany eh?
 
How do they know? That must just be ones that the authorities find out about. I just fell in and my mates fished me out. Nobody reported it, which makes me think it’s way higher. I accept that there’s more chance of being spotted in Dam though.
I remember being a student in Manchester and one of my party tricks was hanging upside down off things, one being a bridge over a canal.
Zany eh?
If anything that just pushed the Amsterdam rate of falls up surely? :lol:
 
The problem I have with these being accidents is that there are far more canals in Amsterdam and I’d hazard a guess that people there are far more baked than they are in Manchester, and the canals are incredibly easy to fall into (I did). So therefore the Dam should have a far higher canal death rate than Manchester. If it doesn’t, what else does that suggest?
Easy , dope makes you float , only logical conclusion
 
Apparently there's no railings, life belts, throw lines or, crucially, not many ladders to climb out if you are unlucky enough to fall in in the Manchester canal system. Leeds have put up some throw lines in various places and apparently they've made a massive improvement to safety. A similar throw line has been installed next to Fatfield Bridge. There's a key for the box in the 3 local pubs and the staff have been trained on how to use it and how to notify the emergency services.
 
I've lived in Manchester city centre. there was a canal out the back of my flats.
From what I can remember in the main there were no railings alongside it although you could probably get back out if you were pushed/fell in.

The canal runs through The Village and I can't recall anyone falling in it there recently.
Some of the ones where people have fallen in are off Oxford Road and behind large buildings. They're used as a cut through to Deansgate Locks etc.
It doesn't surprise me one bit that people have fallen in when pissed.
The solutions are these:
1. Close the towpaths over night
2. Put up barriers (not going to stop people going in IMHO)
3. Look after your friends FFS.

In terms of "Manchester Pusher" the only way I can see someone going in the canal and not being heard/seen is if they're
1) Pissed
2) Already unconscious - whack on the bonce and in you go. I've seen no evidence of this though.

Granted there's a case for cold water shock doing people in and I suspect there's a lot of that. But if you're sober, you should be able to get yourself to a position where you can get out - or get help to get you out.
My lad lives near the canal, and we often walk it in the daytime when I'm there. It's a useful short cut, but as you say there's not much protection if your staggering, so I agree that shutting the access paths at night would be sensible. I was parking up near my house this week, and a very drunk bloke came crashing into the side of my car as he passed. I watched him fall over twice after that.
 
My lad lives near the canal, and we often walk it in the daytime when I'm there. It's a useful short cut, but as you say there's not much protection if your staggering, so I agree that shutting the access paths at night would be sensible. I was parking up near my house this week, and a very drunk bloke came crashing into the side of my car as he passed. I watched him fall over twice after that.

Looks like they're starting to do something about it.

Deaths prompt canal closure at night
 
Why don’t they just drain the canals. The you could race up and down them like in Grease.

I'm not even sure where to start with that.

My lad lives near the canal, and we often walk it in the daytime when I'm there. It's a useful short cut, but as you say there's not much protection if your staggering, so I agree that shutting the access paths at night would be sensible. I was parking up near my house this week, and a very drunk bloke came crashing into the side of my car as he passed. I watched him fall over twice after that.

As you may know it won't be easy to block off all canal paths as there are houses and flats right on them.
HOWEVER if there are canal paths which aren't integrated into people's houses etc i.e. they can be closed off, then they should be before dark - granted that's a job that'll need paying for but it's cheaper than fishing people out of the canal.
Also, if these stretches of canal ARE closed off and someone (pissed or otherwise) decides to get round/over the gates then that's their own stupid fault
 
I'm not even sure where to start with that.



As you may know it won't be easy to block off all canal paths as there are houses and flats right on them.
HOWEVER if there are canal paths which aren't integrated into people's houses etc i.e. they can be closed off, then they should be before dark - granted that's a job that'll need paying for but it's cheaper than fishing people out of the canal.
Also, if these stretches of canal ARE closed off and someone (pissed or otherwise) decides to get round/over the gates then that's their own stupid fault
Not sure this is how risk assessments work.
 

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