Work will begin on the main construction of the Lancaster Bomber sculpture just off the A46 in January 2022.
The steel podium was put in place as work was completed on phase two of the ‘On Freedom’s Wings’ project in December 2019. This came after North Kesteven District Council had previously given the green light to the plans for the full-size art installation on land at Brills Farm just off the A46 in Norton Disney.
The Bomber County Gateway Trust’s 26-metre long sculpture will be mounted on a steel frame to give the impression it is in flight. It will measure 29 metres in height and have a wingspan of 31 metres, making it nine metres taller than the Angel of the North.
Timmins Engineering, which is based on Caenby Corner near Market Rasen, will be fabricating the super structure of the Lancaster after offering to do around £100,000 worth of work for free. And Lincolnshire company MHME Lincolnshire is making the ancillary parts of the Lancaster for free.
Bradford-based Barratt Steel has provided £50,000 worth of steel – £10,000 for free and the rest at a cost. Jessops Construction, William Hare, TATA steel and Hutchinson Cranes also previously gifted more than £100,000 worth of materials and services to the project, while other firms have also made very generous donations to the project.
However, the project still needs a further £90,000 for all the work to be completed.
After a recent pre-construction meeting at Timmins Engineering it was agreed that the construction work will begin in the second week of January. Steel supplier Barratt Steel is delivering the first tranche of steel during to Timmins Engineering during the week commencing January 10.
Timmins Engineering was set up by Ken Timmins around 30 years ago. It is now owned by Ken’s son Ed Timmins, who runs the firm alongside Dave Starling.
A pre-construction meeting at Timmins Engineering with the fabrication team ahead of the work starting in January 2022. | Photo: Bomber County Gateway Trust
Ed told The Lincolnite: “We are fabricating the super structure of the Lancaster, which will involve welding, fabrication and a lot of machining.
“We are doing it in between other projects and hope to have it done by March, then it will have to be sent away to be painted.
“We are a Lincolnshire company and all Lincolnshire lads and it is always nice to help others. I am interested in the heritage and history of Lincolnshire, and it’s great to be involved in the project. It is totally different to what we normally do and it is nice to be part of it.”
Co-owner Dave added: “I saw what Ken [from the Bomber County Gateway Trust] was trying to achieve early on in the infancy of the project, and we jumped on it and said we need to be involved in that.
“All my grandparents were in the RAF during the war, my grandfathers both flew in the war, and it’s a really good legacy project that will be there long after we’re going. It’s something that we just had to be involved with.”
The first phase of the company’s work will be constructing the front part of the fuselage. Work on the wings and external cladding will be done once the Bomber County Gateway Trust’s project receives more funding.
The steel podium was put into place as work was completed on phase two of the Lancaster Bomber landmark ‘On Freedom’s Wings’ in December 2019. | Photo: Bomber County Gateway Trust
Ken Sadler, trustee and project director of Bomber County Gateway Trust, told The Lincolnite: “We are relieved that they will be able to make a start in January, after [the delays of] lockdown and COVID.
“We are relying on the goodwill of engineering firms and would love to hear from anyone else who can help us take the project to the next level.
“We are eternally grateful to Timmings Engineering, Barratt Steel, and MHME Lincolnshire. We realise how busy they are and their commitment to us is undiminished.”
Once this work is complete, the structure will be able to go on site. The next step will then be looking for a firm to help build the structural frame and put it on the already in position stand at the site. More CAD expertise and fabrication services will then be needed for the final steel work on the project.
The timescale for the project depends on how quickly funds can be raised, as well as finding more firms who would like to support creating the sculpture.
Since December 2019, poppies have been planted at the site and the structural frame has been designed. Unfortunately, the price of steel has doubled over the past 18 months.
Around £150,000 has been raised so far for the project work, while there has been a further £400,000 worth of goodwill services and materials from businesses supporting the project. However, at least £90,000 more is needed for the steel work so further funding is required for the project – donations can be made here.
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Nine seal pups took a mudslide back to freedom when they were released into a river in Lincolnshire.
The seals – Barn Dance, Gustav, Renee, Axel, Duncan, Diego, Vermeer, Stanhope and Neil – had all needed months of care when they were rescued. Many were either injured, emaciated, dehydrated and organised.
After months of rehabilitation at the RSPCA’s East Winch Wildlife Centre in Norfolk, they were released from a site in the Sutton Bridge in Lincolnshire on Thursday, May 19, where they would then make their way out into The Wash.
Evangelos Achilleos, centre manager at East Winch, said: “This was a bumper release day for us as we returned nine rehabilitated seal pups back to the wild. I’m pleased to say it all went swimmingly. It’s always such a pleasure to watch them eagerly plunge into the water and then head off towards the sea.
“We released Barn Dance, Gustav, Renee, Axel, Duncan, Diego, Vermeer, Stanhope and Neil!
“There were eight orphaned grey pups and one common seal pup, they had come into our care for a number of reasons, including being caught in netting and one had been attacked by a dog. The common seal pup had been treated for an eye injury.
“These seals have been with us some three to four months on average, and each of them would get through a whopping 3kgs of fish per day towards the end of their rehabilitation.
“The pups have gone through a number of stages of rehabilitation, from being tube fed, to hand fed, to fed with tongs under water, to being fed in shallow pools then deep pools, before finally being released. They have tags in their flippers which allows us to get regular updates where they have gone following their release.”
Donations to support the seal rehabilitation work of the East Winch Wildlife Centre can be made online here. It costs around £3,500 a month to feed the seals and the centre’s water bill is around £4,000.
If you see a seal that looks healthy on the beach it is advised to leave it alone, but in an emergency situation contact the RSPCA on 0300 1234 999, a local wildlife rehabilitator, or the local police force.
Lincolnshire’s biggest rock festival was back with a bang over the weekend – after being delayed four times.
Thousands of rock fans descended on Lincolnshire Showground for Call Of The Wild festival, and were treated to a host of upcoming and well-established acts.
Headliners included Massive Wagons, Reckless Love, and Phil Campbell & The Bastard Sons, established by legendary Motörhead guitarist Phil Campbell after the death of frontman Lemmy.
The four-day rock extravaganza also had many local bands on the billing, including Lincoln-based The Velvet Queens, who announced their new single ‘The Morning After..’ in collaboration with the festival itself.
Many of the attendees had bought early-bird tickets for the festival back in 2019, following the inaugural event three years ago.
Speaking to The Lincolnite Podcast, Dave O’Hara, co-founder of the festival, spoke of his gratitude to the ticket-holders for sticking by them through a difficult couple of years, and admitted the atmosphere at this year’s event had lit a fire within his team going forward.
Listen here:
Call Of The Wild festival started in 2019, and the second show has been pushed back numerous times due to changes in COVID-19 legislation, including one instance where the festival had to postpone just weeks prior to the guidance changing.
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