Cockwells statement following fire at Ponsharden Falmouth

Firefighters were called to what, was described as, a very large and significant fire at the company's production facility behind the former Vospers site in the very early hours of the morning 

Incident commander and Falmouth station manager Martyn Addinall told the Packet they had faced a very large and significant fire in the building which needed 50 lengths of hose to tackle which meant they had to close the roads.

He said there was quite a lot of damage within the building which was used for manufacturing. He said there was nobody on site at the time and all the crews were safe. Full interview in the Facebook Live video.

Cockwells Modern & Classic Boatbuilding Ltd, which is based at Mylor Creek Boatyard, but also operates from two satellite sites at Ponsharden, between Falmouth and Penryn.

In as statement issued this morning Cockwells’ Managing Director, Dean Short, Cockwells confirmed that a fire broke out at its production facility at the former Vospers site (not at its new South West Shipyard across the road) in the early hours of this morning (Thursday, May 16).

An aerial shot of the damaged building taken by South West Sky Visions (Image: South West Sky Visions)

"No-one was harmed in the incident but multiple crews from Cornwall Fire and Rescue Service attended to tackle the blaze, supported by Devon & Cornwall Police," he said.

"The fire is now extinguished, hotspots are being monitored and the damage is being assessed."

“We are immensely grateful to the fire crews who attended and the swift action of all the emergency services.

We will now work with the relevant authorities to determine the cause of the fire and will issue further communications when more is known.”

Firefighters were called to Ponsharden at just after midnight this morning after Critical Control received a call at 00:08 for a fire in a commercial building.

An aerial shot of the damaged building taken by South West Sky Visions (Image: South West Sky Visions)

Roads were initially shut to allow emergency services to work at the scene, although have since reopened. 

Ponsharden roundabout was closed due to the fire with all traffic being diverted past Falmouth School.