We the Curious won’t reopen until 2023, in latest update on fire damage

An announcement this morning from We the Curious confirms that the museum sadly won’t be able to open until next year after the damage from the fire in April is worse than they hoped.

Having had teams of contractors and investigators assessing the building since then, they have found that the water damage is extensive and that all heating and cooling systems need to be replaced.

The fire broke out on 9th April on the roof of the museum. The evidence indicates that damage to the photovoltaic solar panels was most likely caused by birds, which caused a fault in the electrical system. This then resulted in a fire spreading to the roof.

Although the team of contractors is still assessing the damage, they now know that they have sustained significant fire and water damage to the roof, the second floor and the building systems.

Despite the team hoping that they could get the museum back open as soon as possible and, certainly, within this year, it is because of this new finding that the new opening update can be announced.

The investigations up to this point have found that the water damage is quite extensive, and crucially, it’s in the building systems - hence needing to replace our heating and cooling systems.

The good news is that We the Curious are committed to becoming carbon net-zero by 2030, so the work that will take place to repair the building for the rest of 2022 falls in line with their project pathway to reach that target. The museum says that it will significantly reduce its energy consumption once reopen.

Another glimmer of good news is that, as told to us by chief executive Donna Speed in April, the fire doesn’t appear to have damaged any of the exhibitions within the building. Importantly, it doesn’t seem to have caused any damage to the brand new exhibition space, opened only last year.

So, what’s next for the popular exhibition, educational and museum space? We the Curious says: “We’ll be visiting every postcode in Bristol while our building is closed; we’ll be taking the We The Curious experience out and about!

“Starting this summer, find us popping up at free community events and city festivals across the city. We’ll be posting details of events on our website, so do keep an eye out.”

Currently, you can find the live science teams out on weekends at Millennium Square using coloured straws and creative art materials to build amazing structures inspired by the shapes children and families can spot.