Lytham windmill damaged in strong winds

Lytham windmill has lost another sail in the latest storm

High winds have destroyed a windmill's sail less than three months after it was restored from earlier storm damage.

Fire crews were called to Lytham windmill in Lancashire at about 17:45 BST on Thursday to remove a "precariously hanging" sail.

The Grade II listed building on Lytham Green had two new sails in July after storm damage in November 2010.

The chairman of the group which runs the windmill said his "heart sank" at the latest news of damage.

 

Alan Ashton, from Lytham Heritage Group, said: "I thought 'not again' particularly so soon after it was restored. It looked so superb all lit up at Lytham Proms in August, too.

"It is such an important part of Lytham and a very much loved feature."

The windmill was built by the Squire of Lytham in 1805.

In its heyday, until fire forced closure in 1919, its millstones ground wheat and oats into flour, meal and bran.

Fylde Borough Council carried out a major refurbishment of the windmill in 1987.

LHG recently proposed a £500,000 project to the council to turn it into a working museum and the adjacent former RNLI boathouse.

The proposal would see the windmill returned to working order and the boathouse converted into a museum dedicated to a disaster in 1886, which saw 27 RNLI crewmen lose their lives trying to rescue 12 men on board a stricken ship.

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-lancashire-15211745