UK NEWS
WRECKING OF CUTTY SARK
The Cutty Sark on fire yesterday
By Martin Evans
POLICE were last night scouring CCTV footage to see if an arsonist caused the blaze that reduced the Cutty Sark to a charred wreck.
It took 80 firefighters two hours to control the devastating fire that raged through one of Britain’s most important maritime treasures yesterday.
Flames had engulfed the 138-year-old tea clipper at about 4.30am, and later Inspector Bruce Middlemiss revealed: “We are treating this fire as suspicious.”
The Cutty Sark had been undergoing a £25million restoration project in its dry dock in Greenwich, London, and there were fears at first that the entire ship had been lost.
However, despite extensive damage, there are now hopes that the clipper – the only one of its kind left in the world – can be salvaged.
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It’s sad to see something so familiar damaged like this
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By good fortune, half of the ancient timber structure had been removed for repair and was stored in a warehouse nearby.
But two of the ship’s decks were destroyed and there are worries that the intense heat could have warped the iron frame and hull.
Residents in the area were wakened by two loud explosions and saw 100ft flames shooting into the sky from every part of the ship.
Andrew Pamphilon, 27, who lives 50 yards from the Cutty Sark in King William Walk, said: “The heat was intense. Even from 50 yards away I could feel it.
“I couldn’t get any closer. It’s sad to see something so familiar damaged like this.” The Cutty Sark, which was built in 1869, was the fastest vessel of its kind in the world and held a number of maritime speed records.
The ship was built to bring tea from China and was later used to bring wool from Australia.
She stood in front of the Royal Maritime Museum at Greenwich as a reminder of Britain’s proud nautical history and was visited by15million tourists a year.
The Cutty Sark was closed to the public last October for a renovation funded largely by lottery grants.
Those involved with the project spoke of their devastation but vowed to restore the clipper to her former glory. Chris Livett, chairman of Cutty Sark Enterprises, said: “We are devoted to the ship and are determined to put her back together. We had a £7million shortfall on the restoration and it is now significantly more than that.”
Richard Doughty, chief executive of the Cutty Sark Trust, said: “Everyone who loves this ship is devastated. She is a priceless national treasure. The wood on board will have been taken from trees which were saplings around the time of the Battle of Agincourt. It was teak and rock elm, virtually impossible to replace.”
“She is part of our heritage and deserves to be saved. All is not lost. A lot of original timber had been removed as part of the restoration and two decks we have lost were due to be replaced anyway.”
Mr Doughty said the ship was insured but the bill for restoration would now soar and he appealed for public help in meeting the costs.
The Cutty Sark was built in 1869 at Dumbarton on the River Clyde. After being decommissioned in 1922 she was used as a training vessel in Falmouth before opening as a museum at Greenwich in 1957. She was due to reopen to the public in 2009.
The Duke of Edinburgh, president of the Cutty Sark Trust, will visit the wreck today to see the damage.
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