A KEY plank in a North-East project to restore of one of the heroic ”little ships” from Dunkirk which took part in the rescue of 200 men during the Second World War has been achieved.

The leader of Sunderland City Council, Councillor Paul Watson, nailed the final plank – also known as the shutter or whiskey plank – into place to complete the deck of ‘Willdora’’, a Motor Fishing Vessel (MFV).

Willdora, which was built with two sister vessels in Scotland in 1901, is being restored with the help of funding from the council’s east area committee.

Cllr Watson said: “It is great to see how the work is progressing on Willdora. It’s been quite a while since I was a shipwright and even longer since I finished a wooden deck but I can still appreciate the skill and patience required to bring a boat like this back to pristine and as far as possible original conditional.”

At Dunkirk over 300,000 British, Commonwealth and Allied troops were cornered at the French coast. Operation “Dynamo” was launched in a bid to rescue them with a flotilla of small vessels lifting the men from the beaches.

Willdora rescued over 200 British servicemen, but after lifting the troops, she was struck by shellfire and was forced to beach herself, remaining in France after the evacuation was over.

After the war the Willdora was returned to the UK and an ex-soldier from Sunderland, who recognised her, made an effort to rescue and restore her.

Chairman of Sunderland Maritime Heritage, Tommy Rowe, said: “So far her time back home in Britain has been turbulent one. Before coming to Port of Sunderland she had sunk, been vandalised and previous owners could no longer afford her.

“Now, with the generous support of Sunderland City Council and others we can complete a full overhaul. Our aim is to restore the vessel back to as she would have appeared at the Dunkirk evacuation and to use her as a pleasure craft, floating museum and training vessel for young mariners.”

In 1993 based in Tyneside, she was given the honour of leading out the Tall Ships Races out of Tynemouth.

Sunderland Maritime Heritage aim to have the Willdora ready in time to lead out the fleet for The Tall Ships Races 2018, which will start from Sunderland.