Dozens of boats are blocked on the Moselle and river traffic has been completely paralyzed since Sunday, December 8, and the accident which damaged the gates of a lock in Germany.
The chaos on the Moselle river. River traffic is completely interrupted there since Sunday December 8. A freight ship crashed into the Müden lock, southwest of Koblenz, Germany. The damage is significant, and no longer allows boats to circulate.
Indeed, the lock doors were damaged, and repair solutions are currently being studied, but the work could last until March 2025according to German authorities. Thus, 70 boats found themselves blocked on the German and Luxembourg sides, 35 on the French side, this river route being used by transporters to reach the Rhine.
This is why, within the Moselle department, the public establishment Voies navigables de France has intervened since the accident to evacuate the crews. “In France, we are studying solutions to secure boats”explains Antoine Vogrig, the deputy territorial director of VNF in the northeast. “On the German side, they are looking for emergency solutions to be able to allow those who wish to still cross the complicated zone. These are complicated solutions and will be done on a case-by-case basis. It takes more time”he warns. According to German authorities, the repair work could last until March 2025.
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