An arena in tiny Foxwarren, Man., wrecked by a storm that ripped off a section of its roof, might not be ready to reopen in time for hockey season this winter, leaving residents without their only community gathering place.
Stormy weather rolled through the small community, located just south of Russell near the Saskatchewan border, and peeled the cladding off the rink’s roof on Sunday.
Scott Wotton, a board member at Foxwarren Arena, told CBC News Monday that an assessment of the damages will determine whether the arena’s roof cover and rafters were the only parts of the building compromised during the storm, or if further repairs are needed before it can open to the public again.
With only a few weeks left before the start of hockey, skating and figure skating programming in early October, it is unclear whether the arena will be ready on time.
“It could ruin the hockey season this year,” Wotton said.
The arena has the only rink in the community, and while there are other rinks with artificial and natural ice close to Foxwarren, they are only accessible by car, Wotton said.
“Hopefully, we can get things fixed back up in time,” he said.
Wind gusts of 90 to 110 km/h hit the southwestern Manitoba community on Sunday morning. A meteorologist with Environment Canada previously told CBC News the storm was a “bow echo,” so-named because it’s shaped like an archer’s bow on radar. The intense storms are not uncommon on the Prairies.
As the winds picked up, Wotton said small trees were toppled and branches were scattered through Foxwarren, where less than 100 people live. However, the only severe structural damage reported in the community was at the town’s hockey rink.
“It made quite a mess of our arena here in town,” he said.
Cleanup of the debris left by the storm, including the ripped-off roof pieces that closed part of Highway 475, is underway on Monday.
The arena’s board is waiting for a visit from an insurance company representative who can inspect the building and estimate a timeline for the repairs.
Until then, residents have been told to stay out of the arena.
“It’s got to be fixed before anything goes on there now,” Danny Johnson, a Foxwarren resident, said Monday.
“I can’t see it being ready for this winter for hockey and stuff. It’s too late in the year.”
Johnson said the arena rink is the only place residents can gather in the small community.
Summer events as well as winter sports programming are held at the rink.
“Everybody is kind of devastated and sad,” Wotton said.
“It’s going to be a big hole in our community, for sure.”