Leisure centre evacuated due to 'gas smell'

A leisure centre in Essex was evacuated after a 'gas smell' was reported.

Castle Point Borough Council, which runs Waterside Farm Leisure Centre on Somnes Avenue, Canvey Island, warned people not to attend the venue and said it would be shut until further notice.

An Essex County Fire and Rescue Service spokesperson said it was called to the scene at 12:53GMT and added: "On arrival, crews worked to locate the source of the gas leak and isolated the gas. One crew currently remains at the scene with Cadent to make sure the scene is safe."

Gas company Cadent said it had not found any "gas escape" but had turned off the supply as a precaution.

In a post on their Facebook page, the council said: "We have evacuated Waterside Farm Leisure Centre as a precaution due to reports of a smell of gas.

"We are currently working with the emergency services to investigate the issue.

"Please do not attend the site until further notice. We will update this post when more information is available."

A Cadent spokesperson said after the odour was reported, emergency engineers were on site by 13:19.

They added: "We have now turned off the gas supply to the sports centre, as a safety precaution. However, we have not found any gas escape.

"They will need to get their own Gas Safe engineer to complete any further work if necessary."

They added that residents should not be concerned, and the incident was under control.

"Please adhere to any emergency service advice," the spokesperson said.

Essex Police said the incident has been logged as a potential gas leak, and officers were not at the scene.