PS WAVERLEY BOILER APPEAL HITS £2.3M TARGET IN SEVEN MONTHS
Former LNER paddle steamer PS
Waverley will return to the water this year, after the appeal to raise £2.3 million to replace its lifeexpired boilers reached its target in just seven months.
Over 8,000 individuals, in addition to several trusts, and the Scottish Government, which donated £1 million alone, contributed to the Boiler Refit Appeal, which was launched in June after it was discovered that the 1947-built vessel’s boilers – installed in 2000 – were beyond economic repair and required total replacement (SR493).
Paul Semple, general manager of the ship’s operating company – Waverley Excursions Ltd. – said: “Thanks to the fantastic generosity of so many people and organisations, we are now able to push ‘full ahead’ with Waverley’s boiler refit, which will be the most substantial refit since her rebuild was completed back in 2003. I would like to thank everyone who has donated to the appeal and supported our efforts to save the last sea-going paddle steamer in the world.”
Waverley’s new boilers are currently under construction at Cochran’s Ltd in Annan and are expected to be completed in February. It will be towed from Glasgow to Greenock later this month where “major open-heart surgery” will take place to fit the boilers, which will involve temporarily removing the vessel’s distinctive twin funnels.
The work is expected to take around four months and it is expected Waverley will resume its regular cruise duties during the summer.