Barge inches under bridge

8:24am Tuesday 19th August 2008

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With just centimetres to spare, a giant Dutch barge created a stir as it barely squeezed underneath Oxford's Osney Bridge.

The 80ft vessel, called Kei, struck the bridge's arch and had to be hauled through by volunteers gripping ropes from the bank.

It took almost two hours for the barge to pass beneath the lowest bridge over the River Thames yesterday.

The barge, captained by Falklands War Royal Navy veteran Lt Cdr Colin Stone, had already taken on maximum ballast to inch through Godstow Lock and had to be cut free with a chainsaw after getting tangled in a tree in Oxford.

Lt Cdr Stone, of Osney, has had the boat repaired at Eynsham. He plans to take it all the way down the Thames and across the English Channel to France.

He said: "It was a bit hairy. We ran aground at one stage and I was worried we may be in trouble. But we made it through."

Dozens of passers-by watched the tricky manoeuvres at Osney Bridge, which caused queues of boats trying to pass up and down the river.