Friday, 29 November 2015

Roof lifts off H2O Xtream aquatic facility

UPPER HUTT, Wellington NZ, 27 November 2015 — Swimmers and staff at Upper Hutt’s H2O Xtream were stunned when the skylight within the roof lifted today in high winds. The skylight, part of a multi-level roofing structure, began lifting at 11.00am as a gale-force north westerly battered the Wellington region. Some of this skylight has now been fully removed from the roof due to the wind, with debris littering the carpark behind the facility.

Despite an aquatics class taking place in the pool below and a full staff, none of the 50 people within H2O Xtream were significantly injured in the incident.

Local fire services arrived on the scene within minutes of receiving the call to notify them of the lifting of the roof and many of these firemen were within the facility when parts of the roof began to disengage from the structure.

Upper Hutt City Council is now working with the fire service and a local roofing contractor to secure what is left of the vulnerable portion of the roof and to assess the damage, preparing it for repair. The facility has been undergoing scheduled maintenance on its roof, the most recent significant works being the replacement of the portion of roof covering the entrance and office space in April of this year.

“The skylight lifting as it did was a surprise to us all,” says Mike Ryan, Director of Community Services. “We are fortunate that no-one has been seriously injured in the incident and that the facility was relatively quiet when this happened. We have teams in now assessing the damage and to do the repairs which will not be an easy task in these high winds. Unfortunately, this will mean we have to stay closed until the necessary repairs are made.”

H2O Xtream has several events scheduled for the weekend, including a ‘Teenwave’ event as well as group functions. These and scheduled swim-school lessons will be either cancelled or postponed, and the facility will remain closed Tuesday at the earliest. H2O Xtream will contact their guests booked in for these weekend events directly, to discuss their bookings.

People wanting more information or to be kept up to date on the roof repairs and proposed reopening should visit H2O Xtream’s Facebook page, or the Council website www.upperhuttcity.com/news

END

© Scoop Media