A MULTI-million pound leisure centre that was ravaged by fire has been forced to close one of its pools only days after re-opening.The Bury St Edmunds Leisure Centre, which only opened last Tuesday, has closed its leisure pool and flumes because of loose tiling.

A MULTI-million pound leisure centre that was ravaged by fire has been forced to close one of its pools only days after re-opening.

The Bury St Edmunds Leisure Centre, which only opened last Tuesday, has closed its leisure pool and flumes because of loose tiling.

A spokesman for St Edmundsbury Borough Council, which owns the centre, said the tiling around the pirates' galleon children's play apparatus had started to lift and that a section of the leisure centre had subsequently been closed to the public.

It is the latest in a series of setbacks for the centre, first opened in 1975 by the legendary England and Ipswich Town manager Sir Alf Ramsey, which had just reopened after a £7 million refurbishment. It had been closed down for 17 months after suffering a devastating fire.

This was the second time the centre had been hit by a major blaze after it was the subject of a suspected arson attack in 1980.

The council spokesman added: “Murphy's Law has hit us once again - an area that has had only minor repairs over the past few months chose the leisure centre's opening time to go wrong.

“A few tiles on the pirate's galleon in the leisure pool have lifted and, as we don't want to risk children cutting their feet, we are replacing them.

“While laying the tiles will not take long we need to allow time for the adhesives and grout to dry completely. Hopefully this will only take a few days.

“Meanwhile, thousands of people are making full use of the new swimming pool and state-of-the-art fitness facilities and we thank everyone for their very positive comments.”

Real Independent district councillor David Nettleton said: “It is disappointing it hasn't opened fully. People will have got their expectations up. The sooner it is open the better and let's hope nothing else goes wrong.”

While the leisure pool is closed, the 25-metre competition length pool remains open, as do the other enhanced facilities including a state of the art 100-station fitness studio where users can choose their own audio or TV entertainment.

Other improvements to the centre include a new health suite with a sauna, steam room and aromatherapy room.