Thatched House Storm Repairs 2020
Photographs from Post Office & Tourism team and others
The damage to Tristan's traditional Thatched House Museum during the storm of July 2019 was mainly to the turves sealing the roof ridge. See our report on the damage for details. The roof was temporarily repaired with tarpaulin covers, and fortunately the November storm had little additional effect.
The project to rethatch the house started in January 2020 with the removal of the old thatch. Work continued piecemeal as the weather allowed. Island men started cutting New Zealand flax for the new roof in February and rethatching itself commenced on the 30th April. The job was completed during the first week of May with the laying of new turves along the roof ridge to seal the thatch.
Damaged roof patched with tarpaulins, photographed at the end of November 2019 by Peter Millington |
Cutting New Zealand flax leaves for thatching. There are flax gardens throughout the settlement, which make good windbreaks and hedges. Tussock grass was originally used for thatching, but is no longer available on the settlement plains. |
Above and below: A large flat thatching needle is used to tie overlapping bundles of flax to the rafters, starting at the eaves and working upwards to the ridge. |
The men who took part in the project were: Eric Glass, Roger Glass, Jack Green, Joseph Green, Brian Rogers, Stanley Swain, Douglas Swain, Allan Swain, Graham Rogers, Ricky Swain, Dion Green, John Lavarello, Shane Green, Cliff Swain, Riaan Repetto, Nigel Lavarello, Ian Lavarello, Cedric Swain, Rodney Green, Jeffery Rogers, Albert Green, and Nathan Swain.
It is good to see the range of ages in this group, as it means the island's traditional thatching skills are being passed on to the younger generation.