Royal Clarence fire leaves 'after feeling' as Martin's Lane reopens

An 'after feeling' is felt around Martin’s Lane, following the reopening of the passageway after the Royal Clarence fire in October.

“There’s still a funny feeling around here after what’s happened,” said Candice Regan, the Manager of Polkadot Gallery.

Martin’s Lane reopened in the last weekend of November, a month after the Royal Clarence Fire.

The store has received best wishes from the public after the fire. “When we returned we had a couple of lovely phone messages left from our regular customers,” Candice said.

Due to demolition work and safety precautions, Polkadot Gallery remained closed until November 8 and was the first store to open on Martin’s Lane.

The Polkadot Gallery suffered being open whilst part of the lane was cordoned off.

“It was really quiet during those few weeks,” Candice said, “business was fairly poor as we didn’t have the footfall.”

The Christmas market on Cathedral Green has helped bring customers to the store, “It’s busy now towards the end of the day,” the Manager said, “We’ve got a busy few weeks ahead.”

Fire spread to The Royal Clarence Hotel in Exeter, after the Castle Gallery caught fire on October 28.

A major part of the high street was cordoned off, forcing stores such as Marks and Spencers and House of Fraser to close for almost a week.

The residents and businesses of Exeter were asked to cut down on their water supply over the weekend, to help the firefighters tackle the blaze.

The demolition of the hotel is still underway, ideas are currently being discussed how to restore the building.