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Written by Staff Writer
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May 21, 2007 at 11:35 AM |
Early today (monday), a fire sewpt through the hull of the last surviving 19th century tea clipper, the Cutty Sark. It was one of the UK's most inspiring monuments to its mercantile navy heritage. The ship was one of the fastest of its time, and has been a celebrated historical icon for decades.
The ship was undergoing a four year restoration project. The fire has not completely destroyed the ship, as firefighters were able to extinguish the blaze in time - the alarm was raised at about 4.45 AM, and the fire was out in two hours. However, the extensive fire damage has meant that the cost of the restoration will increase by millions. Those in charge of the restoration project, however, have expressed a desire to go forward with it despite the blaze.
Chris Livett, the chairman of Cutty Sark Enterprises, said "We're going to redouble our efforts to ensure that the ship is open, available, back and running in the future. I think when we finish with this project, she will be better than she was ... in a complete state a year ago"
'We are treating this as a suspicious incident. We have no intelligence about suspects. We are aware that there were a number of people in the area at the time. We would urge anyone with information to contact police immediately,' Inspector Bruce Middlemiss said.
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Last Updated ( May 24, 2007 at 11:18 PM )
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