On Friday 8 December 1978, a devastating fire tore through the main block of South Downs College.
The disastrous blaze, which took place only four years after the opening of the College, caused over £1 million in damages and resulted in significant structural damage.
During the fire, the top floor of the main building was completely destroyed whilst the ground floor and first floor suffered extensive smoke and water damage. Students also lost a large amount of work, causing uncertainty.
Despite this enormous setback, the College was determined to bounce back and to ensure students experienced minimal disruption and delays to their studies. The response was incredible with some staff members back to work the following Monday, which included an administration centre which operated in the Sports Hall, which was unaffected by the blaze.
The unaffected areas of the College which also included the technology block and the music and drama area were put to use straight away, with students attending tutorial on 15 December, only 7 days after the fire! The College was then officially re-opened on 12 January 1979 which was only just over a month later!
73 portable cabins were donated and students were then able to continue with their studies. In August 1979, the library was already in use to interview new students and over 850 students were on track to start their courses on 17 September, which was the start of the autumn term.
The overall response was extremely positive and the collaboration amongst the community was overwhelmingly positive to get the college back up and running. With practical thinking and good humour, even making light of the quirky cartoons (see photo).
The students contributed heavily to this, for example raising money and surprising 100 pensioners with a food parcel, who had been invited into the College restaurant for a Christmas dinner.
We will be continuing our journey through the 1970s this month. If you would like to share a story or memories, click here.