Flood hit Mirfield pub shut for seven months getting ready to re-open

The Ship Inn in Steanard Lane had to close when the nearby River Calder burst its banks during Storm Ciara in February.

The pub has been repeatedly hit by flooding in recent years and in 2016 it was shut for five months, resulting in a “near six figure sum” being spent on repairs and flood mitigation measures.

It was engulfed three times in the winter of 2015-16 and special, easy-to-replace fixtures and fittings were installed to keep closure time to a minimum in future floods.

Repair work to flood-damaged buildings cannot start for some time as walls and floors need to completely dry out.

Storm Ciara saw a powerful surge which demolished a large stone wall the length of the pub’s grounds and smashed equipment in the adventure playground.

Work has been underway inside for several months and the 31-metre long boundary wall is also being rebuilt.

The pub’s parent company Greene King is advertising online for staff with a start date in October. The Reporter understands the pub hopes to re-open in time for half-term week later in the month.

A spokesman for the company said no opening date had been confirmed, however.

The spokesman said: “We’re continuing to work hard behind the scenes to get the pub ready following the extensive flooding earlier this year and ready to reopen in line with our five Pub Safe promises, which are in place to protect our customers and our team.

“Although we don’t have a definitive date to reopen yet, we hope to have the pub open and trading again in the near future.

“We can’t wait to welcome the local community back to the Ship Inn and thank our customers for their patience whilst we work through our reopening plans to ensure the pub is Covid-secure for them when we do.”