Boat clubs count the cost
The view of Corpus pavilion from outside the college’s sports ground.
As the Animal Liberation Front (ALF) activists closed the doors on the incendiary devices they had planted Hertford boathouse on Monday 4th July, the campaign against Oxford’s biomedical research facility took on a wider context and became an attack on the fabric of the University itself. Fire crews were called to the scene at just after 11pm.
Mansfield JCR President Ed Mayne arrived shortly afterwards and described the events that unfolded: “By the time I got there the fumes were almost asphyxiating, totally unbearable. Four of the Catz boats appeared to have split in half, as had the two Benet’s boats on the opposite side. The club rooms above were filled with smoke.” Firemen were delayed in their response because the locks of the boathouse had been glued together.
As it became apparent that the fire was still raging inside the upstairs clubroom, the area was evacuated due to fears of an imminent explosion. “Everyone, including the firemen, had no choice but to watch and wait,” says Mayne. The area was sealed off and eventually fire investigation teams were able to collect samples of incendiary material to send away for testing. On 6th July the ALF claimed responsibility for the attack.
It has been estimated that the total cost of the fire will exceed half a million pounds. 26 boats from six different colleges were destroyed along with thousands of pounds’ worth of blades and other equipment. Although the building itself avoided structural damage, much of the interior was gutted and fireproofing will need replacing.
Hertford College Boat Club lost six racing VIII boats and blades, incurring losses of £80,000, while damage to the club room, which opened in 1997, is likely to total £200,000.
Both the club and premises are fully insured but President Matt Rodger warned that ongoing repairs will cause major disruption for several weeks: “Members of HCBC respect an individual’s right to peaceful protest but vehemently oppose such a dangerous, criminal act as arson, particularly when directed at a target with no direct links to the perpetrators’ cause.
The positions of the Hertford boathouse and Corpus Christi Pavilion in relation to the Isis and Abingdon Road.
His sentiments were echoed by Alice Motion, the captain of St Hilda’s Boat Club, who said: “We are shocked and appalled that people would stoop so low in a bid to get their opinions across.” St Hilda’s lost two boats, whilst the fire destroyed eight St Catz racing boats, one single scull, all their blades and two St Benet’s boats. However it is the poorest clubs which look set to lose most from the incident. Mansfield College Boat Club has estimated losses totalling £24,000.
President Katie Moore said the club was working with the college development office in an appeal to alumni but voiced concerns about re-insurance. “It will be difficult to insure an increase in costs,” she said. Ed Mayne stressed students’ detachment from the University’s policy on animal research: “Mansfield JCR has nothing to do with animal testing at Oxford. None of our students use the facilities and we don’t help fund animal experiments.
Robert Cogswell, spokesman for animal rights campaign SPEAK, denied that the recent attacks had damaged public perceptions of the animal rights movement, arguing that support was actually increasing. He refused to condemn the use of tactics such as arson, arguing that restrictions placed on protestors by the University had forced people to resort to more extreme measures: “If you put people in a corner, the only option is to fight their way out.
Cogswell said he was prepared to recognise members of the ALF as part of the animal rights movement, saying: “I know which side I would prefer to be on.” He categorically denied any SPEAK involvement in the incidents.
5th Oct 2005