One person was taken to hospital and another was treated for breathing difficulties following a chemical leak at a swimming pool part-owned by double Olympic gold medallist Rebecca Adlington. Firefighters and paramedics were called to Swim! in Oldbury, West Midlands, just before 9am on Saturday.
The facility, which was officially opened by 34-year-old Ms Adlington just six weeks ago, was quickly evacuated after a gas cloud formed when chemicals were mixed into the pool. One person was taken to hospital, with a second being treated for breathing difficulties at the scene.
The cloud was contained inside the building, which remained closed, and West Midlands Fire Service said and they are ventilating it. A specialist response team were also on site and using air monitoring equipment to ensure the area is safe for public use again.
Incident commander Andrew Shakespeare said: "Shortly before 9am we were mobilised to an incident at Swim! on Birchley Island Retail Park, Oldbury. The incident involved a chemical leak within the plant room of the swimming pool.
"Ten people were evacuated, with two people complaining of breathing difficulties. The leak was contained to the building and posed no risk to the public.
"Two fire engines and our hazardous materials team responded, together with colleagues from the ambulance service. The first crew were at the scene within three minutes of being mobilised. Our teams are ventilating the building and our specialist officers are using air monitoring equipment to make sure the area is safe."
Swim! Oldbury opened six weeks ago and is owned by four-time Olympic medallist Ms Adlington OBE, along with fellow Olympians Steve Parry MBE and Adrian Turner, plus JD gyms.
Jake Bird, from Swim! Oldbury, said: "We’d like to thank the fire service and paramedics for their attendance this morning after the unfortunate accidental mixing of a small amount of incompatible chemicals in our plant room. We can assure all of our customers that no one was hurt as a result of this minor incident and that our venue remains safe to use."
