Removal of debris from the Raglan Wharf resulting from the Raglan Wharf Fire has now been completed by Raglan Excavators. While the fire damaged area is still off limits to the public, the perimeter area of the wharf is open to the public. And the good news is that this means that fishers can return to the wharf for a bit of relaxation. And this is already happening as shown by today’s photo showing a fisher on the wharf with a haul of sprats and one butterfish.
The central wharf area is still cordoned off with a orange safety barrier and DANGER- Keep Out signs. It is easy to see the hazard as daylight and water can be seen between the reclaimed area and underneath the old wharf as shown in the photo.
Waikato District Council’s Water & Facilities Manager says the Council is working on an insurance claim and once concluded it would look at rebuilding the buildings with community input. The cause of the fire is unknown at this stage. What Mr Bax didn’t say is that Council has a flush Harbour Reserves account with all of the money it collects from the ground rents in the Wainui Road and Bow Street area of Raglan. This is one Raglan project where the cash is sitting waiting to be spent. While fishing boats can berth at the wharf, the lack of ice facilities means that they can not operate from the wharf. While it is great that Council is going to seek community input for the rebuilding, it urgently needs to put temporary facilities to get Raglan Seafoods operating again. It has been calculated that unless moves fast, it will be a $3 million annual blow to the town.
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