Almost all of Bristol's iconic yellow ferry boats would have been destroyed in the Underfall Yard fire if it had happened just a few weeks earlier, the operator has said. The blaze ripped through the harbourside boatyard in the early hours of May 6, ruining structures including the Bristol Ferry Boats workshop and essential maintenance tools and equipment stored there.
Despite what has been described as an "awful loss and added financial pressures", the not-for-profit organisation has now reassured customers that it will continue services as usual after the narrow escape. A statement released today (May 17) revealed that only recently, three of the five ferries in the fleet were at the boatyard for their yearly survey by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency.
The not-for-profit's maintenance manager John Raymond-Barker said: "We are counting ourselves lucky that all of the ferries have undergone their yearly surveys. If this had happened a few weeks ago three of our ferries would have been lost in the fire, although things are going to be tough, we are grateful we can continue to operate."
Read more: 'We are devastated but will rebuild' says Underfall Yard after huge fire
However John, who has worked at Underfall Yard for more than 20 years, lost a lifetime's collection of tools in the fire. He said: “The tools I’ve lost will be extremely hard to replace, they are specialist tools that I have spent my life’s career as a boatbuilder collecting. It is going to take a lot of time, and money to recover from this."
Bristol Ferries is now fundraising for the tools and equipment they will need to continue to operate throughout the year. Carrie Browne, co-director of Bristol Community Ferryboats (BCFB), said: “We are all devastated by the loss of our maintenance shed for our business and for the people of Bristol who have lost such a historic part of its maritime history.
“Despite the huge challenges we face, we are committed to delivering all our services including, private hire, public trips, waterbus services and our community and education trips. I am incredibly proud of our staff who are out on our boats seven days a week, offering wonderful tours of the harbour and enjoyable parties.
"Although they are grieving this huge loss, it means so much for them to see the public enjoying the waterways." She said they are grateful for the support of the public and their shareholders following the blaze, which also affected other businesses including a Bristol blacksmith.
Carrie said: "We hope that the people of Bristol will be able to support us by coming on one of our ferry tours or booking us for a special occasion party. Ferry fares start from as little as £2 and, as a community business, every penny spent by customers is invested back into the fleet and the services offered. We also have a donations page on our website for anyone wishing to donate online."
According to the website, the boats are currently not serving the Cottage Landing stop following the fire. An image shared today showed that a sunken boat is blocking the ferry terminal.
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