Case of the vapours forces Leisurelink evacuation

LEISURELINK is operating as normal following an incident last week that forced it to be evacuated.

Several people were taken to hospital after “irritating vapours” were produced at the aquatic centre in Waurn Ponds just before 6pm on Wednesday.

City of Greater Geelong spokesperson Geoff Russell said the incident had been traced to a 30-minute power outage at Leisurelink.

“When power was restored, the plant room resumed injecting disinfectant agent into the pool water.

“This caused a natural chloramines reaction, which resulted in an elevated odour, especially in the children’s pool area.

“We believe this odour led to some breathing irritation for some of the children in the pool at the time.

“Once alerted, City of Greater Geelong staff followed normal procedures and evacuated the facility; they also called emergency service responders.

“We have determined that at no time was there a leak of any form of gas.

“Our computer records also indicate that at no time did the disinfectant dosing levels into the pool exceed normal limits, set by health authorities.”

He said Worksafe gave approval on Wednesday night for the pool to re-open on Thursday.

“The City again regrets and apologises for any distress or discomfort caused to any patient, and urges anyone with health concerns to visit their local GP, or phone Nurse-on-Call on 1300 60 60 24.”