‘We’ve been left devastated by blaze at our café – but we’ll be back’

A couple who run a community café in Blackpool’s South Shore have been left devastated after the huge Waterloo Road blaze forced it to close for months ahead.

But Sarah and Billy Hallett, of the South Shore Pitstop Community Café at 21 Waterloo Road, have vowed that it will reopen at some point in the future.

The café was one of several businesses decimated by the ferocious fire which ripped through the Smart Mart building at around 11.30pm on February, Friday 6.

The fire ravaged not only Smart Mart but neighbouring businesses on the block – the Pitstop café, the Omoto Caribbean Shop, the Premier shop and a new restaurant which was all set to open.

Several families in the vicinity have also faced the desperation of having to leave their homes.

Sarah, 43, says the café’s closure has affected many people in the community, as it was a safe haven and gathering place for many locals, including vulnerable individuals.

Sarah said: “There are no words strong enough to describe the devastation we are feeling following the fire

“What has happened is not just damage to a building it is heartbreak, shock and deep uncertainty for so many people.

“As a family, we are completely overwhelmed, we’re numb with the uncertainty.

“Everything we have poured our hearts into over the last two and a half years has been suddenly paused. We don’t know what tomorrow looks like.

“This café has never just been a business. It has been a lifeline, a safe space for people who needed somewhere to go, someone to talk to, somewhere to feel they belonged – and right now, that space is gone.”

Sarah says that because of ongoing construction work and serious safety and structural issues within the surrounding buildings, the cafe is unable to reopen for the foreseeable future.

She says it could be six months before it reopens.

She said: “We are trying desperately to secure temporary premises within the area so that we can continue. There is a real possibility that we may not be able to find a suitable space and in the right area.

“Our staff are now out of work indefinitely. They are more than employees they are family. They have been impacted emotionally, mentally and financially”

Despite this, Sarah vowed: “We are determined that once everything is sorted, we will be back. It will have to be in this area because that is where our community is.”

She added: “This fire has not just affected one premises it has shaken an entire stretch of our community. Most heartbreaking of all are the displaced families. Families who have lost their homes, their security, their sense of safety.

“They are now navigating temporary accommodation, uncertainty, emotional trauma and financial strain. Our hearts are broken for what they are enduring.”

A donations link has now been set up through Rebuild Waterloo Road Facebook Page for those who have asked how they can help.

A spokesman for Blackpool Council said last week: “We are continuing to support residents who require temporary housing and are in contact with those in the affected area who require support.

“If you have a housing need and haven’t spoken to us, or if your circumstances have since changed, please send us a Facebook inbox message with your name and address and we will follow up with the relevant teams.”