Luke Evans said he still can’t believe it has happened
Luke Evans(Image: Liverpool Echo)
A man has described how his “life’s work” has been destroyed after a fire broke out inside a portacabin. Luke Evans is a PhD student at the University of Liverpool and CEO of Scintilla CME Ltd.
Scintilla CME convert organic waste into clean electricity using ‘groundbreaking technology’. The company states that once the technology is launched, it will be a ‘viable and immediate sustainable alternative’ to the damaging fossil fuel industry.
However Luke was just two months away from his submission date when the portacabin, which contained 12 years of research work and was used as a ‘lab’ went up in flames in a suspected arson attack.
Emergency services were called to The Bridge on Spofforth Road, Wavertree just after 8.30pm on Friday, January 10. Police believe the fire was started “deliberately” and are appealing to anyone who witnessed suspicious activity to come forward.
Luke used the portacabin, which sits on Liverpool City Council’s land, as a workshop, where he stored the only physical representation of the technology, which had been created and built up collaboratively over many years.
Everything inside the portacabin, including other scientists’ research stemming back 25 years, recorded data and machinery was destroyed in the fire. The 45-year-old described how he received a phone call telling him the cabin was alight.
The burned-out remains of Luke Evans’ research facility on Spofforth Road in Wavertree(Image: Liverpool Echo)
Luke, who is originally from Kent but lives in Toxteth, told the ECHO: “I went in to collect something at 4pm on Friday night and I left about 5pm. And at 8.30pm I had a phone call telling me it was alight.
“I just couldn’t believe it. Earlier in the day the bath cracked so we can’t have a bath or shower, we’re waiting on it to be repaired. And then I was supposed to be taking my son to a taster session at nursery for him to start nursery on Wednesday, and then the car didn’t start. I jokingly said to my wife, ‘Everything happens in threes. We’ll wait for the third thing now.’
“I would never have believed it would be this. I just still don’t believe it really. I just keep thinking in hindsight, maybe I shouldn’t have left it all in there. Maybe I should have got it insured. But it’s not insured because I couldn’t afford the insurance.
“It’s the experiments that are gone and it’s the experiments that I can’t redo because all of the equipment and parts I need to remake. It takes more than two months to make it all, and that’s if I had all the money to buy the parts, and I don’t.”
Luke and his wife have spent the last five years living off a combined income of under £12,000(Image: Liverpool Echo)
Luke described how all of the research was self-funded over a period of 12 years. Luke and his wife have spent the last five years living off a combined income of under £12,000 in an effort to build a more sustainable future.
He said: “As someone with a Masters in engineering I could be earning quite a high wage. I’d been working on it for the past 12 years, not getting paid.
“We got some grants through feasibility studies and other funding. We’ve spent 10 years getting to a point that feels like, ‘right, this is good, this is working. We’ll be able to actually start earning money soon.’ And all the sacrifices we’ve made along the way. Yeah, it’s devastating.”
Luke said most of the sacrifices he has made along the way have been financial, including finding funding and paying for a PhD. He continued: “I’ve worked different jobs along the way, I’ve worked for the city white scheme, I’ve repaired bikes for people, put up shelves for people, taken any odd job. I’ve done some lab teaching, all alongside trying to develop this technology.”
A Crowdfunder has been set up in the hope Luke and his team can start to rebuild what was lost in the fire. Anyone wishing to donate can do so here.
The burned-out remains of the research facility(Image: Liverpool Echo)
Luke said the technology would be beneficial to the city as it would “reduce costs of electricity, heating and water”. He said: “[The technology] will help the city region meet it’s net-zero targets and give us a solution on what to do with food waste. It would be cheaper electricity. It would be cheaper water, and cheaper heat. Which is why the council and lots of other people were very interested in the research. And it’s all gone.”
A joint investigation between Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service and Merseyside Police is ongoing and anyone with any information is asked to contact police. Detective Inspector Mike Fletcher said: “Luckily nobody was injured at the time of the fire which has caused significant damage to the temporary buildings.
“The investigation is in the early stages, which we believe was started deliberately. I would like to appeal to anyone was in the vicinity at around 8.30pm onwards and noticed any suspicious activity then please let us know.
“I am also appealing for any drivers who were in the area at the time to please check your dashcam footage and get in touch if something suspicious was captured. This evidence could hold information that could be vital to our enquiries.”
Anyone who witnessed the incident or with any information can contact police by DM via the social media desk on Twitter @MerPolCC or Facebook ‘Merseyside Police Contact Centre’ with reference 25000026759. You can also contact the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously, on 0800 555 111. Anyone wishing to donate to the Crowdfunder can do so here.