the-pier.co.uk

Steve Hunt, the owner of the pier at Colwyn bay was last night declared bankrupt.

Mr Hunt purchased the pier 5 years ago affter selling the family home. The refurbishment and restoration of the interior was completed but an estimated £4,000,000 was needed to complete the project.

Victoria Pier

With the more and more UK residents holidaying in the UK following rising costs for things like airline fuel charges it is hoped that the UK’s piers will once again become focal points for british families.

There are 55 piers around the UK so nobody is too far away from one and the variety of entertainment and sightseeing is real draw for all kinds of families.

Many of the piers have seen major redevelopments in recent times as they aim to cater for the modern day families.

Lastminute.com has recorded almost a 20 percent increase in UK based holiday bookings and it’s hoped this coupled with an expected indian summer will bring hoards of visitors to the UK’s piers.

In a press statement Kerry Michaels the co-owner of the Grand Pier vowed “”We will work tirelessly to restore this magnificent structure to its former glory”.

Mr Michaels praised his hard working staff although the short term status of the 100 or so employees remains unknown. He also expressed his toughts for those families and busineses who relied on the pier to draw in visitors from far and wide.

Mr Michael and his sister took over ownership of the pier in February 2008 and had already completed major redevelopment work which included a half a million pound indoor karting track and a climbing wall.

A fire has devastated the pier head of the Grand Pier.  At around 7am on the 28th July 2008 fire and smoke was seen rising from the pier head complex which includes arcades and playground rides.  At it’s height 30 firefighters where tackling the fire which it is believed to have started in the west tower.

Being a wooden structure the fire quickly took hold and molten metal dripped from the pier into the sea.

Thankfully no injuries have been reported.

As the fire has been localised around the pier head there is every hope that it can be rebuilt.

I’ve updated the webcam page with a link to camera that is provided by the Bournemouth Surfing Centre and linked from the BBC dorset feed.