The Arrival of a Giant

When they said we needed a big crane, they meant it!

(All photo credits: Su Hurrell @Ladybirdsu)

There’s a new arrival on the skyline of Betley village this week. We have hired a gigantic crane to assist with the inspection of what is left of Betley Court. The size of this thing has to be seen to be believed. It arrived on a 12-wheeled vehicle, one of those extra wide bright-yellow beasts you have to squeeze by when you pass them on the motorway.

Looking as if the Thunderbirds have delivered this straight from Tracy Island

To be honest, it looks like we could have hired it from the Tracy brothers, of “Thunderbirds” fame; although a family outfit who specialize in ‘International Rescue’ might just be the contractors we need to recover Betley Court!

Even in 'resting mode' Bige Yellow Crane towers over the dovecote

Big yellow crane is currently parked on the Peace Garden, which after all the trench work, and the removal of the rails, is looking more like an historic society’s recreation of a World War One trench, than a garden for contemplation.

The Peace Garden, complete with trenches and a massive crane

I’ve been shown a video of the crane being set up, and the whole apparatus unfurls like a huge yellow praying mantis. The reach of the arm is fully from one side of Betley Court, from the side road, right over to the lawn. This allows a people-carrying basket to be moved fully in three dimensions around the building for inspection and repair.

The people-carrying basket

So far, Jane, the structural engineer has made a detailed inspection of areas of concern that she observed from earlier drone video footage. There’s also been a tidy up, conducted from the safety of the basket. Loose bricks, tiles and beams were pushed into the centre of the ruin. Nigel tells me this was quite hard to watch, as even more of the building came down. Nigel got the chance to go up in the basket himself, yesterday too. He was able to inspect areas of concern, and how they might be addressed.

An area of concern - the lintel over a first floor bedroom

I was on site this morning, as yet another skip arrived, and spoke briefly with Jane who was with Louise, the conservation officer from the local council. Experts like these will guide us as to what is possible, and how we go about it. No one is in any doubt about the enormity of the task ahead, but now we are getting a clearer picture of what direction we might take.

A crane with a reach!

View of the crane from Court Walk