Locks dried out to carry out replacements

The rain-swelled chambers of some of the Thames Locks are are being dried out for the first time in 30 years as part of a £5.1m maintenance programme.

The Environment Agency has closed both Bray and Shiplake locks and cranes are in place to lift out the timber wooden gates and replace them with new steel ones which are expected to last for more than 60 years.

Media teams were invited to see the lock being drained.

Paul Power, Environment Agency engineering manager for the River Thames, said: "A lock without water is a rare sight, and serves as a reminder to us on how much we rely on the smooth operation of locks to keep the Thames running."

An EA fisheries team was expected to start rescuing and removing hundreds of fish from the lock into the main river today.

The fish will be stunned and caught by a process called electro-fishing when electric currents are passed through the water.