Only ten years after the schooner was completely overhauled in 2009 all three masts have now been removed from the Pascual Flores.
The councillor for culture, Domingo Perez, said that there has been a rapid deterioration of the wood and for safety reasons, in order to ensure they didn’t simply topple over, the decision was taken to remove the foremast and the main mast, having already dismantled the mizzen mast 2 years ago.
The firm contracted to remove the masts is linked to the Nao Foundation, a charity that specialises in the promotion of history through the construction, management and display of historical ships, and will try to preserve some elements. The works represent an expense of less than 15,000 euros. The shipwrights carrying out the work say that the hull, apart from some maintenance problems, is in a good state of conservation. However Perez did not want to comment on any future plan to renovate the masts.
The Pascual Flores was the last sailing ship built on the beach in Torrevieja during the early part of the last century and was restored to her former glory in 2008 at a cost of 4 million euro. However, whilst moored in Torrevieja her condition has gradually deteriorated.
Talks with the NAO Foundation over the future of the Torrevieja sailboat were discontinued by the present council when it came into power in 2015. It is known that at that time the charity was extremely keen to be involved in the ship’s future. It could well be that those discussions will now be resurrected.
