AUDLEM'S newest tourist attraction may be popular with visitors, but it has left some in the area feeling 'drained'.

A hole has appeared in the bottom of the Shropshire Union Canal near Overwater Marina and over the last few days water has drained into an underground channel.

Fortunately for the inhabitants of the marina, the affected section has been dammed off while members of the Canal and River Trust repair the drain.

A spokesman for Overwater Marina explained that the Canal and River Trust engineers were on the scene within an hour of the hole being reported on Friday.

"They were there within a hour of it being reported, dam built, fish stock saved, planks in, pumps on and flood-lit and onsite until 10.30pm. leaving a man in a van all night to monitor water levels," they said.

But despite the potential inconveniences for the marina, many walkers have visited the site with intrigue.

Dave Martin, local canal boater, says it could be a 'big job' to fix.

"The hole in the canal near Overwater Marina has become a new Audlem visitor attraction, judging by the number of socially-distanced people and dogs there on Saturday morning," said Dave.

"Seeing all the floodlights, pumps and generators that have arrived, it would seem contractors worked until late yesterday to isolate the section using stop planks under the bridge and a giant tarpaulin dam across the canal further down.

"And there would have been a 'fish rescue' before the section could be emptied.

"The hole is clearly visible. It looks like a big job, so if Covid restrictions hadn't got in the way, a pop-up cafe down there might have been quite profitable.

"It looks like Canal and River Trust are expecting a huge turnout to view the hole in the canal at Bridge 80.

"A wagon load of what looks like crowd control barriers have been delivered today, as can be seen from the photo.

"Word on the ground is that it will take four to six weeks to fix, though as yet, there is nothing official from the Canal and River Trust."