Heatwave to worsen chlorine shortage, Beccles Lido says

Beccles Lido expects to run out of chlorine within days if the hot weather, crowds and chlorine price hikes continue

An outdoor pool said it could run out of chlorine in days due to low supplies and hot weather boosting demand.

Beccles Lido in Suffolk said the global shortage of the chemical had also caused the cost of it to double in just two weeks, adding to its problems.

Matt Day, general manager, said sunny weather burned chlorine faster and the more customers that came, the more chlorine that would need to be used.

He said he was "very worried" about the whole situation.

"Up until now we've been pretty good with our chlorine supply. We've been able to get hold of supplies where others haven't," he said.

"However, we are now getting to the point where we are getting very low and are likely to run out in a matter of days."

The shortages have been attributed to a backlog in supply from China due to Covid, worldwide transportation issues and a fire in a US chemical plant in late 2020.

Manager Matt Day says he is "very worried" about the impact of the chlorine shortage

If left untreated, the pool would become a "green, slimy mess" within a couple of days, Mr Day said.

"The sunnier the weather the more chlorine we use. The chlorine is burnt off by UV light, so the more sunlight on to the pool, the more chlorine we use, the faster we deplete our supply.

"Equally with sunny weather, we get more people in and more people also creates more demand on the chlorine, and we go through it a lot quicker.

"So as much as we want sunny weather to bring customers in and to fill our tills, it also means we use much more of a scarce material."

Mr Day said chlorine prices had doubled for a second time this year and paying for the required supply was also "a struggle" financially.

Earlier this week it held a fundraiser to help meet its cost.