Beaconsfield arena closes due to legionella contamination

CTV Montreal: Arena closes Beaconsfield has closed its arena one week earlier after discovering Legionnella

The city of Beaconsfield closed its arena earlier than planned after Legionella bacteria was discovered on site.

Samples are taken every month from the arena's cooling system, and those taken on April 7 showed higher than normal levels of the dangerous bacteria.

"The bacteria goes into the air and through the ventilation system so we also had to be concerned for the neighbours. That's why we wanted to be on the safe side," said Mayor Georges Bourelle.

The arena's main condenser is relatively new but the cooling tower still requires regular testing.

"There's no doubt that the arena is a little bit old and so piping can get rusty. A lot of things can happen, we'll try to determine what happened," said Bourelle.

The arena was due to close throughout May for annual maintenance, so the early closure meant a ringette tournament had to be cancelled.

The contamination was only present in the arena's cooling tower and did not affect the pool.

The Public Health department says the risk of catching legionnaire's disease from this instance is remote.

"For it to transfer to humans you need the bacteria in the water in big enough quantities and it needs to become airborne, it needs to become suspended in the air, and then people can inhale it," said Dr. Noemi Savard.

Last year, 47 people caught legionnaire's disease on the island of Montreal, resulting in three deaths.

So far there is no indication anyone was infected at the arena.

The building is scheduled to reopen to the public on May 23.