Last year’s fire at the Cutty Sark was an accident according to a police investigation. An official report has revealed that an industrial vacuum cleaner had been left on for two days prior to the fire, which took place in May 2007 whilst the ship was undergoing restoration and repair.
The incident was originally thought to be “suspicious” by the Police and much time was spent studying CCTV footage to trace people and vehicles seen in the area at the time. The fire added a 12 month delay to the tea clipper’s restoration and required an additional £10million funding.
It had been feared that the ship was beyond repair but fortunately much of the hulk had been removed from the site as part of the restoration. Following the fire, the Cutty Sark Trust faced a huge funding black hole, but their fundraising was accelerated and in July of this year, shipping magnate Sammy Ofer made a £3.3 million donation to get the project back on track.
Mobile Phone Footage of the Cutty Sark Fire
Find out more about the Cutty Sark in Greenwich
Very generous of shipping magnate Sammy Ofer! That is a big donation.