EXCITED boat owner John Simmonds said he “cannot wait” to get back on board his salvaged £60,000 vessel.

Mr Simmonds, 35, was at the Botley Road Bridge in Oxford yesterday watching the Environment Agency (EA) pump out the last of the water from One Old Peculier, which broke free of its moorings and sank after hitting the bridge on Monday last week.

The IT specialist said he believed his narrowboat home would be removed from the site in the next 24 hours.

He said: “From what the EA have told me, they needed to pump the water out of the boat because it had become contaminated with some sort of oil or diesel from the engine after it was lifted out of the water last week at a 45-degree angle.

“Now it will be able to be removed from the riverbank on a low-loader and taken to a boatyard in Eynsham where I can finally get it back and set about making repairs and moving back on to it.”

Mr Simmonds said he was still reeling from the “kindness” of Oxford Mail readers, as their donations have bought him a duvet, jumper and a new pair of sandals in the past week.

He said: “I’m really pleased that I was able to go out and buy some new sandals with the money kindly given to me by the readers because on the day all I was left with was the shoes I was wearing.

“I felt like I had nothing else to my name but now I do, I have things of my own, which feels amazing.

“Thank you to everyone who has helped.”

Mr Simmonds who is staying with friends, has already received a pledge of £25,000 from a man who wished to remain anonymous, which brings the total money raised by readers of the Mail to more than £27,0000.

If you want to donate any clothes, food, aid or cheques to John Simmonds send them to Oxford Mail, Newspaper House, Osney Mead, Oxford, OX2 0EJ.