Gale brings down 65-foot-long shade over VOC Stadium gallery

The VOC Stadium at Palayamkottai, which was renovated under the smart city programme on an outlay of ₹14 crore and reopened 15 months ago, lost a portion of the shade over the gallery after sharp showers accompanied by strong winds hit the area on Monday.

The VOC Stadium at Palayamkottai, which was renovated under the smart city programme on an outlay of ₹14 crore and reopened 15 months ago, lost a portion of the shade over the gallery after sharp showers accompanied by strong winds hit the area on Monday.

After a hot forenoon, Palayamkottai and its suburbs experienced a sudden downpour with strong winds around 2 p.m.. As a result, shades erected over the north-western side of the gallery covered in synthetic sheets crashed down violently. Since the concrete pillars carrying the shades over the gallery close to the children’s play area were not strong enough to withstand the gale, the shades up to a length of about 65 feet were blown off. No one was injured.

 When several projects, including reconstruction of Tirunelveli Junction bus-stand were taken up by the Corporation under the smart city project, VOC Stadium was also given facelift at a cost of ₹14 crore. Since the playground had only a concrete gallery earlier, new synthetic seats were installed. Moreover, shades were also erected over the seats to protect the spectators from rain and shine.

 Corporation Commissioner V. Sivakrishnamurthy immediately rushed to the spot and inspected the quantum of damage. “We are now studying the extent of the damage and will check the quality of construction. Based on the findings, we will take appropriate action,” he said.