Barriers are no deterrent

MY heartfelt condolences go out to the families of the recent tragic drownings in the Rochdale Canal and local reservoirs.

My brother drowned in the River Mersey whilst ‘canoeing’ (handmade canoe tied to his wrist!) many years ago. Our family were naturally devastated, but I now look back at his 17 adventurous years with pride and admiration. He even had the (then) deepest cave in the UK named after him for his potholing exploits.

Whilst he had a life-saving certificate, the weir was too much, even for him.

I must however question whether warning signs and barriers are actually a deterrent, they were more of a challenge to us when we were kids. Do we restrict access to all canals, reservoirs, caves, even bridges? They would still find a way in.

Yes, of course we must take sensible measures to prevent future tragedies, but it should be proportional and have a commonsense approach.

R.I.P guys. Malcolm Maginn, Macclesfield