TWO MILLION litres of water were pumped out of a famous leisure facility on Wednesday night.
Firefighters were called to The Source underground skatepark in Hastings at lunchtime when the manager discovered the basement sump room was flooded to a height of several feet.
The skate park, which opened last February and has been hailed as a model for seaside towns’ economic revitalisation, is built on the site of an underground Victorian swimming pool and the basement beneath acts as a drainage facility for a large section of Hastings.
Owner Rich Moore told The Argus that a fresh water leak from a burst water main overwhelmed both the pumps installed in the basement.
East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service sent a specialist unit, usually reserved for draining reservoirs, into action.
He said: “That arrived at 7pm ad it took them until 1am to pump it all out. They said they pumped out two million litres, that’s five Olympic swimming pools.”
The water was pumped onto the beach after Environmental Health officers confirmed it was uncontaminated.
The Source did not open for business on Wednesday but the skatepark itself was unaffected and owners expect to open again shortly.
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