Volunteers Race Against Time to Restore Queen’s Pier in Ramey

Efforts to restore Queen’s Pier in Ramey are intensifying as volunteers work against the clock and tide. With limited daylight and tidal constraints, the community has mobilized to install replacement steel girders on the pier. A recent stretch of favorable weather enabled the team to successfully install four 20-foot-long girders on bay nine.

On Monday, calm and sunny conditions allowed for additional cross sections to be lifted into place. However, the team faced a tight window, waiting until 14:00 for the tide to recede sufficiently, leaving them with less than two and a half hours of daylight to complete their work. As the project advances, both ingenuity and a thorough understanding of tidal patterns have become crucial.

The volunteers have effectively utilized a telehandler operating from the beach, but access to the center of bay nine presents challenges due to its wider design and steeper shoreline. To overcome this, they have fabricated a special extension for the loader’s forks, enhancing its reach. Longer slings have also been employed, adding critical inches necessary for lowering steel components into position.

The most complex aspect of the restoration has been the installation of central beams for bays nine and ten. These beams have been built in sections and will be assembled on-site. Delays caused by the need for an approved design solution, along with adverse weather conditions, have pushed the restoration timetable back. Consequently, the next shipment of steel for bays nine and ten was only delivered towards the end of October.

Bay nine represents the first of five wider stabilisation bays along the pier. Unlike others, these bays feature a unique design that includes permanent seating around the outer edges of the decking platform. In total, Queen’s Pier comprises 60 bays. As restoration progresses further out along the pier, the use of the telehandler will become impractical, prompting the team to explore alternative methods, such as constructing a gantry or lighter lifting systems to position the steel sections.

The Queen’s Pier Restoration Trust signed a five-year lease with the government in July 2017 to undertake the restoration of the first three bays. This initial phase was completed within four years, transforming the project into the largest community initiative on the island. An extension to the lease was secured in 2021, allowing volunteers to shift focus to phase two, which aims to restore bays four to eight.

Bays four and five were completed in time for a celebratory event marking the King’s Coronation, while bay six was finished in autumn 2023. By the end of last year, bays seven and eight were also completed, bringing the total restored length of the 2,160-foot-long pier to 320 feet or just under 98.5 meters.

As the community rallying around Queen’s Pier continues, the collaboration and dedication of volunteers remain vital to the project’s success. The ongoing restoration not only preserves a historic structure but also strengthens community ties through a shared commitment to revitalizing this landmark.