The blog is back on time this month! Which is surprising considering the amount of
work we have achieved down at Tamworth Road in this period.
The gang have worked tirelessly down between the narrows and the A51. During this
month we have seen great strides towards completing the concreting down there.
As before, as mentioned in the June blog, we again took delivery of another couple of
loads of concrete from a 'mix it on site' source in July. On one day we broke all records
for the amount of concrete laid. A full load of over 11.0 cubic meters of concrete were
delivered early on the Wednesday morning and by lunchtime it was all laid and tamped.
A good volunteer turnout and benign weather was in our favor. This delivery left us with
nearly all the concrete base between the walls completed.
With the brickies now given plenty of space down there, good progress on the
construction of the wall has been achieved. All the concrete blocks have now been laid
and the laying of the blue engineering bricks, that are used on the top half of the wall, is
progressing relentlessly. The brickwork is now the limiting factor on the completion of
the work in this area.
Till the brickwork is well progressed from the narrows towards the A51 we will be unable
to move the earth access ramp back from within the narrows to alongside the opposite
wall.
We need to do this (move the earth ramp) to enable us to complete the concrete behind
the new wall, fill the gap between the concrete slabs in the base of the canal with
puddled clay, seal the canal end adjacent to the A51 to make the whole area water tight,
dig out to the narrows stop planks, and lay the last few bricks to complete the wall.
Enough to keep us busy for a week or two or more.
Following on from last months 'blog', I can report that we now have back the use of our
larger yellow dumper truck. As work draws to it's completion down by the narrows we
will be needing it when we resume work back in pound 25 where, I am afraid, there is
still more concrete to be done.
It would be wrong for me to mention and thank individual members of the volunteer force.
They have all done a magnificent job this month and my thanks to them all. Without
them the job would never be finished.
Hugh Millington
