MARYSTOWN, NL – A recent ammonia leak at Kaetlyn Osmond Arena is not a cause for concern, according to Marystown recreation director Rob Warr.
The building is “secure and safe” he told the Southern Gazette following this week’s council meeting on Tuesday.
A leak was discovered in August, and Warr said the town acted immediately, bringing in CIMCO Refrigeration to repair the problem.
“There was one leak around the valve and also we discovered there was another leak, so they had to do a weld on that,” Warr said.
Ammonia use at arenas in Canada has been in the spotlight recently, after a leak killed three workers at a rink in Fernie, B.C. last month.
Warr recently attended a meeting for arena managers in Harbour Grace, where refrigeration safety was a major topic of discussion, he told council.
Warr said Service NL will be visiting arenas in the province unannounced in the near future to make sure their refrigeration systems are up to code.
Warr told council the recreation department knows the system at Kaetlyn Osmond Arena needs some work, and they are being proactive in fixing some minor issues with town staff. However, outside expertise will also need to be brought in, he said.
Warr told the Southern Gazette afterwards the issues were “cosmetic more so than anything.”
He said he expected the cost to be in the thousands of dollars and therefore wanted to make council aware in advance so members wouldn’t be caught off guard.
“The system is fairly old and we need some updates, but we’re acting on it, and we have a policy put in place at the arena if there is a leak,” he said.
Council approved a motion Tuesday to pay CIMCO $3,620.18 for the repair work it completed on the leak.
Warr said that amount was a partial bill and another invoice is forthcoming.
pherridge@southerngazette.ca
