Storm Eowyn: High winds rip roof off £38m Bangor Aurora Leisure Centre for second time in four years
High winds ripped the roof off Bangor Aurora Leisure Centre for the second time in four years.
Late in 2021, Storm Arwen tore part of the £38m leisure centre’s roof off.
Now Storm Eowyn’s done the same thing, causing massive damage as winds of up to 90mph battered Northern Ireland.
The council-owned building, along with every other leisure centre in the area, was closed due to the provincewide red alert when the storm hit.
The previous damage took a long while to fix, however, and to the chagrin of locals had parts of the centre out of action for a protracted period.
It’s not clear how severe the new damage is, though Mayor Alistair Cathcart says that the affected part of the roof appears to be an original part, not the rebuild carried out to repair Arwen’s impact.
Mr Cathcart, a DUP politician who represents the part of Bangor containing the leisure centre, said: “It is sad to see that Aurora Aquatic and Leisure Complex has sustained damage to the roof due to Storm Eowyn.
"No formal assessment of the building will be conducted until it is safe for staff and contractors to do so, and at this stage the extent of the damage, or any impact that will have on the opening of the centre, is unclear. The public will be advised as soon as possible.
“It is important to note that whilst damage to the roof occurred during a previous storm in 2021, this is a different section of the roof and previous repairs appear to have held.
"The council are urging the public to stay away from the area and refrain from taking photographs or videos for their own safety.”
North Down Alliance MLA Connie Egan stated that “large amounts of insulation and debris appear to have fallen” from the building.
“We won’t know the full extent of the damage until after the storm and I would appeal to members of the public to avoid the area for their safety,” she said.
“I have raised this with the chief executive of Ards and North Down Borough Council and will continue to engage with them to understand timelines for clean up, repairs, and to understand what preventative steps will be taken to protect the site in future.”