The reopening of Broughty Ferry’s Castle Green splash pool is facing further delays due to last week’s thunderstorm.
Dundee City Council announced two weeks ago that Broughty Ferry residents and visitors would soon be given the opportunity to enjoy the Castle Green feature once again.
The popular pool has been out of action for over two years since it closed during the end of summer 2019.
And locals were looking forward to its reopening as Covid-19 restrictions across the country began to ease.
It was hoped the Broughty Ferry splash pool would make a comeback within the last two weeks after safety checks were carried out.
But due to excessive water damage during flooding, Dundee City Council has said the splash pool water supplies will need repaired before it can open to the public again.
Heavy rain delays reopening
A Dundee City Council spokesperson said: “Following the heavy rain last week the storage unit housing the electric and water supply was damaged and will have to be repaired before the pool can open.
“We know this will come as a disappointment to families looking to enjoy the splash pool before school starts again and we hope to have the work completed as soon as possible.
“An announcement will be made once the work has been completed and the pool is ready to reopen.”
Local disappointment
We spoke to some locals and visitors to Castle Green about their thoughts on the delayed reopening.
Amanda Corrigan, 45, from Dundee says she and her three-year-old granddaughter, Jamie, are disappointed the fun facility is still out of action.
Amanda said: “Every time we come and they’re not open we think, ‘well, maybe next time’ but they never are.
“They’ve only got about two weeks left of the summer holidays and my granddaughter Jamie would love to have them.
“It’s something that they’re missing out on really and every time we come the kids are asking ‘why’s it not on?’ and we can’t answer that because we don’t know, there’s no way for us to find out.
“I remember from when I was younger it was the main feature for coming here so she would absolutely love it.
“I’ve got three kids and I brought them all when they were young and they loved it.”
Clare MacGillivray, from East Lothian, who was visiting the park with her niece, says she believes the splash pool has been kept closed for a reason.
“My niece would have loved it; it’s quite safe as well so she would enjoy it.
“I guess with Covid and stuff there are reasons why things are not opened and I guess if there are flooding problems then you want it to be safe for them as well.
“I’m sure people will use it as soon as it’s open.
“It’s not the end of the world when you think about the fact that people are losing their lives.
“This is a minor inconvenience. It’ll come back; it’ll be fine. I’m not hugely concerned about it.
“I’d rather it was closed if there were safety concerns about the water.”
Jen Philp, 32, who lives in Broughty Ferry, said her daughter, Lulu, aged six, had been asking about the reopening during their visit to Castle Green playpark.
Jen said: “Lulu was asking me if the splash pools were open and I wasn’t actually sure because I haven’t seen them on for ages.
“It’s a bit of a shame because it is nice and it’s dead popular.
“I don’t have any feeling majorly to it not being open but it is a bit of a shame that they haven’t been on because my daughter Lulu has used it in the summer times.
“It would be good, especially if the weather’s good.
“It is a shame that it won’t be open before the schools go back so I suppose it would have been sensible to have it open during the holidays when everybody could enjoy it a bit more.”