Liz Elmont of Sark Books shows tourism officer Penny Prevel a vellum-bound copy of The Book of Sark. (0740979)

SIGNIFICANT remedial action is needed on Sark’s Island Hall following the failure of a joint in the building’s main water inlet pipe and the resultant flood that penetrated much of the premises’ foundations.

The situation was discovered at the end of January and the water supply was turned off immediately and the pipe repaired. However, it later became apparent that the water had penetrated the fabric of the building, with floor coverings lifting, skirting boards coming away from walls and doors not closing properly.

A statement issued by the community centre’s trustees disclosed that once the scale of the damage became clear, it was obvious that there must be a deep-rooted problem and an insurance company representative was called in.

The trustees said he confirmed that the water damage was extensive.

Last week the trustees met a team of assessors and it was confirmed that major damage had been caused by the flood.

‘Although details are not yet available, it is suggested that the work will involve serious disruption to Island Hall facilities and might take months – rather than weeks – to resolve,’ said the trustees.

That’s not good news at all for the scores of Sark residents who use the hall on a regular basis. However, on a brighter note, the trustees are working closely with the premise’s management team to find ways of reducing the impact of the repairs.

I am told that those involved are determined that as many as possible of the activities that the hall is put to – and the list when read out when evidence was being given in last year’s litigation seemed endless – will continue while the work is carried out.

That said, it’s probably going to be some time before the full extent of both the damage and the repair programme are known and because of this the trustees said it’s difficult to be precise about the effects on hall users.

But, Sark being Sark, various ways of keeping the facilities operating are already being investigated and the trustees promise further statements to the public as and when they have anything to say.

Despite the fact that the news they have disseminated hasn’t been that great, the trustees certainly did everyone a favour when they made a public statement as soon as the scale of the flooding and its potential damage became apparent.

Hopefully, the disruption caused by the remedial work will be minimal and won’t affect the many sporting and social activities that take place, nor the use that visitors make of the premises, particularly in relation to the bar and eating facilities.

A few months ago, I wrote about plans to produce a Book of Sark to mark the centenary of the publication of the original William Toplis classics. The plan was – and remains – to use the original 100-year-old copper half tone printing plates to print the book’s 21 illustrations and I am told that modern printing techniques mean that the colours of the artist’s works are even more faithfully reproduced.

Liz Elmont of Sark Books has a vellum-bound book in her shop and is currently taking orders for the publication, which is expected to be available later this year. The vellum copy will cost £2,450 – they will be numbered one to 100 – and numbers 101 to 500 in full cloth will cost £1,500 each.

All 500 will be signed by William Toplis’ great-granddaughter, Fiona, who has written the text of the accompanying volume, The Making of the Book of Sark.

* The email address for comment is fallesark@sark.net.