FALLEN trees that blocked a canal towpath have been cleared by a charity after a storm brought them down.

The trees blocked the canal towpath at the Barbourne end of the Worcester and Birmingham Canal in Worcester.

The trees were reported to have fallen on Friday and were still blocking the path on Monday in the wake of Storm Caroline which battered Worcester.

Some pedestrians had to double back when confronted with the obstacle but others, including school children, managed to climb over or under the fallen tree.

Another fallen tree nearby was passable with care though it brought walkers near to the edge of the frozen canal which was covered with a thin layer of ice on Monday after the city was hit by a so-called 'snow bomb' on Sunday.

A spokesperson for the Canal and River Trust, a charity which protects over 2,000 miles of waterways in England and Wales, said: "We’ve had eight trees down in total, all of which have been cleared now.

"Again, we apologise for any inconvenience, but can assure people that will always get out as soon as we can to sort this type of thing out.

"As a charity it’s a good example of the type of work we have to do, at this time of year in particularly, and because of the sheer length of the local canals and rivers, we do rely on people alerting us to problems when they occur."