Highbridge’s King Alfred Sports Centre will partially re-open on Monday (September 8th) after suffering severe flooding damage caused by a torrential rain storm last month.
The centre suffered major damage to its roof and interior after exceptionally heavy rain caused flooding across the town on August 5th, as first reported here.
The sports hall, reception area, one squash court and changing space area are all being re-opened from Monday on reduced hours.
The rest of the centre, including the gym, dance studio, a second squash court and additional changing areas will remain closed until the New Year whilst extensive repair work is carried out on the building, including the roof.
1610 Leisure Trust, which leases the centre from Somerset County Council, says it has been actively working with the council to resolve the matter as soon as possible.
1610 General Manager Graham Furze told Burnham-On-Sea.com that the team at King Alfred Sports Centre have been working long hours to ensure that customers can access some of the facilities.
“The team have all been working round the clock behind the scenes to get the centre up and running again which reflects their dedication and that of Somerset County Council and the contractors who have been at site working hard to turn things around quickly to ensure some services are available to customers.”
“Although we still have a long way to go, because of the extensive damage to the building we are pleased that we can offer a limited programme of activities to our customers.”
“We really appreciate the patience of our customers and the community during this difficult time and we would like to thank them for their understanding whilst contingency plans to cope with what has been a very challenging situation have been in place.”
The newly re-opened facilities will be open during the following times from Monday September 8th: Mon – Fri: 5-10pm and Sat-Sun: 10am–2.30pm.
A spokeswoman added that the centre had not been damaged by a burst water mains, as incorrectly reported elsewhere. “The damage has been caused by the torrential rainfall,” she said.
