Octopus demolition to start tomorrow

Landlord Yvonne Burford and tenants, Mike and Delphine Pesrin, released a statement late yesterday about the clearance project, nearly four months after the building overlooking Havelet Bay was badly damaged by fire.

They said they wanted people to know about the work and to stay away from the site while the clearance was progressing, in the interests of public safety.

‘With all demolition work, there will be an element of dust and debris released into the air, and the safety of the construction team as well as external parties including passers-by is paramount,’ they said.

‘All precautions are being taken to avoid any danger to the public.

‘We appreciate that this is a site that is of significant interest and in the hearts of many locals.

‘However, we would kindly ask that the public stays away from the site as far as is practicable during the demolition phase for their own safety and the safety of the construction team.’

They said there were many contaminants on the site.

The fire disturbed an area of the roof of the former Half Moon Cafe which contained slates with harmful materials.

Infinity Construction has been appointed main contractor for the project. Specialist contractor AC Ltd has been on site and already removed as much of the visible debris as possible from the ground and surrounding area.

However, the demolition will disturb areas that have been unsafe to access since the fire, and they may contain harmful materials.

‘In addition, during the initial phase until the contaminants are removed, there will be comprehensive air-monitoring around the site during working hours to ensure the safety of the area and any passers-by.’

The fire started at 4am on Saturday 24 February and took firefighters almost 24 hours to extinguish.

Police closed their investigations at the start of last month.

Mr and Mrs Pesrin have previously thanked their customers for ongoing support and said the restaurant would return after an inevitably lengthy closure.