A busy Aberdeen gym was evacuated and sealed off for hours yesterday after a chemical scare.
Six fire crews, including two specialist units, raced to David Lloyd Gym after the alarm was raised about 3.15pm.
About 30 people inside the gym were evacuated, and police set up an exclusion zone and diverted traffic away from the entrance on Garthdee Road.
Last night, it emerged sodium bisulphate and chlorine had been found in a pipe in the plant room during a routine inspection.
Two specialist engineers were drafted in to inspect the pipe, and the fire service later confirmed none of the chemicals had entered the pool.
In the meantime, staff and gym users were taken to a nearby building at the Robert Gordon University building, where they were forced to wait for almost two hours before being allowed back to get their belongings.
A fire service spokeswoman said: “Everyone was evacuated and no one was injured.
“Two firefighters wore breathing apparatus during a precautionary check.
“We took advice from hazmat officers and cleared the scene at 5.21pm.”
One man who had been using the gym at the time, who did not wish to be named, said: “We were all asked to leave at
3.15pm because of an incident in the plant room which controls the chemicals entering the pool.
“People who had been inside were taken into Robert Gordon University.”
Members who had been escorted out were allowed back in to collect belongings at around 5pm.
David Lloyd later released a statement on social media saying the pool would be closed until further notice.
It said: “Safety is our number one priority.
“During a routine inspection, there was found to be an issue with one of the valves in the plant room.
“As a precautionary measure we decided to evacuate the club and call the fire brigade.
“They have now left and the club will remain closed until specialist engineers have fixed the valve.
“At no point have any chemicals or gases leaked as a result of this issue, and the club has been temporarily closed purely as a precaution.
“We apologise for the inconvenience caused by this.
“We are doing all that we can to resolve this issue as quickly as possible.”
It is not the first time the emergency services have been called to the gym.
In July 2010, a member of staff was taken to hospital after inhaling toxic fumes.
Emergency services were called to the gym’s swimming pool just after receiving reports of a chlorine leak, and scores of staff, gym users, tennis players and swimmers were evacuated.
