In 1999, during the annual ADLS Commemorative Cruise, Naiad Errant had a lump of wood strike a propellor and damage the hull - causing water to start flooding in. Fortunately she was saved from sinking by the prompt action of fellow ADLS skippers, and was escorted to the nearest safe haven at Rochester, on the River Medway.
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When Naiad Errant was craned out of the water to inspect the damage to the hull, further problems of
rot and decay in the planks and frames were found - so much so that the boat was deemed unsafe to move. The
keel had 'hogged' and was sagging at each end.
John Richards and Paul Richards (John's son) funded the repairs and are joint owners with Sandy Evans. |
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Initially hull repairs were made to Naiad Errant in an effort to get her seaworthy in time for the
commemorative return to Dunkirk in 2000. However this proved a much larger task than at first thought -
with over 500ft of mahogany planking being replaced (see photograph on right), and all the ribs doubled
up with new steamed oak timbers.
When it became apparent that she wouldn't be ready in time for the 2000 return to Dunkirk, it was decided to turn the repairs into a full restoration - taking Naiad Errant back to how she looked in 1940 at the time of the Dunkirk evacuation. This was only possible due to the hours of painstaking research undertaken by John Richards, using the extensive archives and old photographs of Naiad Errant that had been assembled by Sandy Evans and previous owners (some of which are shown elsewhere on this site). |
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Due to the extent of the decay and rot in the original timbers, the majority of Naiad Errant's interior had been stripped out to get access to the frames. This empty shell made it easier to attempt a full restoration and whilst everything original that could be salvaged was kept, a lot of new woodwork had to be fabricated to the original 1939 design.
Several major changes had to be made to Naiad Errant's outer appearance to return her to the way she looked in 1940. See below:
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The alterations shown above are just a few of the more obvious changes in Naiad Errant's outer appearance. However nearly every detail of her outward appearance was carefully researched from the archives and recreated as closely as possible.
The restoration was not just limited to the outside of the boat - the whole interior was also restored to be as close to the 1940 look as possible.
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Whilst the interior could be recreated to her 1939 specification from original plans, the restoration did
allow for one or two modern conveniences... although these are hidden from view as far as possible. For
example the fridge is inside the original 'meat safe' locker, and there are also holding tanks, a calorifier
for hot water and a diesel-fired heating system hidden in the bilges.
The photograph on the right shows the rear saloon. |
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Morris Tolhurst of Beacon Boatyard, Rochester, did the vast majority of the repair and restoration work. The restoration was completed in October 2001, and Naiad Errant returned to the River Thames soon afterwards.
For further information on the restoration of Naiad Errant see the excellent write-up by Alex McMullen (who had crewed Naiad) in the November 2002 issue of Motorboats Monthly.