Asbestos has closed the outdoor pool at Gisborne's Olympic Pool Complex after the same substance halted repairs and has kept doors shut on the indoor pool.
Asbestos was found in the overflow channel of the indoor pool at the Gisborne Olympic Pool Complex after repairs began in April. Photo: LDR / The Gisborne Herald
Gisborne District Council said there was no "consistent, convincing" evidence that ingested asbestos was hazardous to health.
The council attributed the information to the World Health Organisation, saying the health risks with asbestos occur when it is dry and inhaled.
Asbestos containing material (ACM) was found during routine maintenance of the 33-metre outdoor pool at Gisborne's Olympic Pool complex on 28 June.
Loose sealant revealed ACM in the overflow drain of the outdoor pool.
The complex is closed until further notice.
Council liveable spaces manager De-Arne Sutherland said it was working with assessors to understand how it had happened and to determine the next steps to get the pool open.
"The outdoor pool was painted and the overflow channel was covered with an ACM sealant nine months ago. It appears this sealant has failed and we're working with the contractor involved to understand how it's failed and possible solutions."
The outdoor pool is usually closed over winter but had remained open while repairs and asbestos remediation was carried out on the indoor 50m pool.
Repair work to the indoor pool halted after contractors discovered asbestos in the overflow channel of that pool on 20 April.
The indoor pool is being repaired with the intention of keeping it open for the next two years while a new $46.05 million pool complex is built next door.
It meant swim squads were bracing against winter weather conditions until further notice.
Comet Swimming Club moved to the outdoor pool at Gisborne Boys' High School after the indoor pool at the complex closed for repairs in April.
Club general manager Rochelle Somerton said it was only supposed to be for a couple of weeks, but their "resilient" coaches and swimmers had made the most of the situation.
"Our coaches have nice warm jackets and the water is warm for the swimmers," she said.
"We are keen to get back to the Olympic Pool Complex as soon as possible.
"It is still only a tent but it does keep the weather off your back and the wind away. We look forward to our return there.
"It's not the easiest at Boys' High but everyone has adapted and adjusted so well. Without the use of Boys' High we would have not been swimming, so we are so grateful to have the opportunity to train there."
The Boys' High pool was heated and wind-proofed in anticipation of the Olympic Pool Complex closing at some point during the rebuild, she said.
Glenn Sutton, who coaches an adult swimming group five times a week, said they had been swimming in the outdoor pool at the complex since asbestos was found indoors but classes had been off since the latest find.
"We fit in with whatever happens at the pool. No one screams about it. We haven't got a problem.
"We'll just keep on working with the council."
For the past six weeks, they had been told the indoor pool was opening in two weeks, Sutton said.
"You just work with it. You can't do anything about it."
Comet Swimming Club had offered up some lanes at Boys' High, he said.
Sutton commended the pool staff for their work over a "trying time".
The Olympic Pool Complex was built over 45 years ago. Asbestos is common in Gisborne buildings and pools that were built between the 1940s and 1980s.
Council chief executive Nedine Thatcher Swann said it was fine-tuning designs for the new pool complex and hoped to share them with the community in the coming weeks.
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