A WELL-KNOWN member of the Droitwich boating community died after his narrowboat got into difficulty and sank in a canal lock.

Allen Green was aboard his boat at Lock 5 of the Droitwich Junction Canal on Monday morning with his elderly mother when it became engulfed by water. 

According to an eyewitness, Mr Green - who was in his 40s - is said to have helped his mother and dog to safety before returning aboard and becoming trapped on the sinking boat.

Rescue workers at the scene say it could have taken as little as two minutes for the narrowboat to fill with water. 

James Cowlishaw, who tried to help rescue the trapped boat builder, said: "A gentleman was running down from Lock 5 saying there was a boat in the lock and the boat was sinking and there was a man trapped in the boat. 

"It was quite clear that the water was very close to the top of the boat. It was submerged. 

"A couple of passers by tried to get in. The trouble was the water was so high and the cushions and furniture were floating - we were trying to pull that out. 

"It was clear that we needed to get more air into the boat. I went back and started to open the canal up so the water level dropped and created an air pocket."

Fire crews from Droitwich, Malvern and Evesham arrived, along with the police, ambulance service and Midlands Air Ambulance from Cosford.

The lock was drained and fire officers climbed on board to rescue Mr Green, who is understood to have lived alone on the boat in Droitwich, but despite lengthy resuscitation efforts he was pronounced dead at the scene.

Droitwich Town Councillor Sandy Laird, who is a member of The Droitwich Waterways (Pamela May) Trust, was at the scene and said emergency crews spent "at least half an hour" trying to revive Mr Green, who had helped to re-open the Droitwich Barge Canal in 2011.

He said: "We knew him well. He was a very skilled canal man, he was a boat builder and he had his own boat for many years so it was just a terrible, tragic accident.

"He really was a very nice man and I just feel so desperately sorry for his mother.

"He was one of those people who was a jack of all trades and very willing to give his time and to help people.

"He was very well known. He was such a nice chap. He was just a thoroughly nice, honest, hard working young man." 

Worcester News readers have taken to Facebook to express their shock and sadness following the tragedy.

Becky Breakspear wrote: "R I P xx lovely man ! God bless x"

Jennie Hanson said: "R I P Alan very sad xx"

Meanwhile Cat James said: "😭 such a shame he was such a lovely man too"

Mr Green's narrowboat, named Sonskit, was removed from the five-year-old lock on Tuesday before being towed to a nearby marina.

Inquiries into the incident may focus on whether part of the 50ft boat, possibly its tiller, became wedged in part of the lock after it was pushed backwards by incoming water.

West Mercia Police confirmed it is not investigating the death.

The Canal and River Trust (CRT), which is responsible for the country's waterways, said it would assist with any investigation to see if any measures were needed to prevent a repeat of the tragic incident.

A trust spokesman said: "We're deeply saddened to hear that someone's lost their life on the canal, and our thoughts are with the family at this very difficult time.

"We're in contact with the emergency services to try to understand exactly what has happened, and will do anything we can to help as they conduct their investigation.

"Incidents like this are rare, and there have been no indications as yet that there's a fault with the canal, however we'll be looking at whether there's anything we can do to prevent this kind of thing happening again in future."

A spokesman for West Midlands Ambulance Service said: "The lock was drained and firefighters went on board the narrowboat.

"They brought the man out and advanced life support was carried out by ambulance staff, but sadly it was not possible to save him and he was confirmed dead at the scene."

A spokesman for Hereford and Worcester Fire and Rescue Service said: "Our thoughts are with the family at this difficult time."

Worcester News:

Boaters at the nearby Droitwich Spa Marina were shocked by the news.

Francis Cox, a boater from Somerset, said: “It’s not a very nice thing to hear about on your holiday.

“We initially saw the emergency vehicles and my initial thought was that it was a exercise. Sadly it wasn’t.

Mr Cox, who has moored his boat in the marina, said he couldn’t understand how it had happened.

“It’s a shocking, very sad and very tragic event. These things are fairly infrequent and I don’t think anybody knows what’s happened," he said.

Mr Cox, 64, said the authorities needed to find out what happened.