ENGINEER: CHS POOL COULD HAVE COLLAPSED, AND CAUSED HEALTH ISSUES

The Columbia High School pool was in danger of collapse that could have caused a severe flooding of the immediate area, according to the engineer who recently conducted a structural review of the facility that prompted district officials to immediately close it down. 

The report also indicates there were potential "health issues" because the ventilation system within the pool is no longer operational.

Thomas Andrasz, senior vice president of EI Associates of Cedar Knolls, authored the report that was issued to the district on Sept. 9, prompting the closing of the pool soon after.

The school board had approved the study, at a cost of $24,000, following previous concerns about the pool's future stability after it was found there were leaks in some areas.

"There is no way of predicting when there would be a collapse," Andrasz told Maplewoodian.com. "I think we were all surprised by the findings ... The core findings found the strength to be significantly less than we would specify today."

He later added, "reinforced steel under the pool and within the concrete is badly corroded."

The pool, built in 1928, is not in-ground, Andrasz said. It actually sits over a tunnel area that connects to basement storage areas and other spaces.

"Even if there wasn't anyone in the pool, there would have been an extensive amount of water released," he said. "The lower level mechanical space, the boiler room, would have had a significant amount of damage just from the water."

A copy of the report obtained by Maplewoodian.com indicates the structure is "inadequate" and suggests that the walls and pool deck "undergo major structural reinforcement or reconstruction."

It also found a potential health concern, stating, "The mechanical ventilation system within the pool natatorium is no longer operational. Lack of ventilation presents a health issue for the users. Lack of a functional ventilation system also causes an increase in humidity levels within the pool space, build up of airborne chlorides from the pool chemicals as well as additional condensation."

See portions of the report and images showing the corrosion and leakage HERE.