"charles" wrote in message
...
I don't see how you can possibly infer that. It's *possible* but given
the speed with which fast moving water can erode riverbanks etc, it seems
equally likely that this was an "acute. event.

If the water had been going over the slipway, then I'd agree with your
suggestion. But it wasn't.

I thought on the day that the news first broke about Whaley Bridge there was
a video which showed a lot of water cascading over the full width of the
spillway. I got the impression that this was a recent video dating from a
day or so earlier, with the implication that it was after this that they
slabs were found to be cracking.


Interesting that https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-englan...shire-49247226
shows them taking the outlet of the pumps over the lower part of the
spillway on the opposite side to the collapse. I'd have thought they'd want
to avoid any more water flowing over the spillway in case of undermining of
the earth fill beneath the concrete.