Winter Olympic 2010 Stadium’s Roof Collapsed

1528 Views · January 6 · Filed under sports, olympics, world record

BC Place Stadium—the future and only venue for Opening & Closing Ceremonies of Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Games—suffered from roof collapse this Friday.

BC Place Stadium is the world largest air-spported domed stadium covering 10 acres in all, with a circumference of 760 metres (2,500 feet). The roof is made of 2 layers of fibreglass woven fabric with a thickness of 1/30 inch (0.85 milimeters) in each layer, and is kept inflated with 16 fans. The stadium was opened in 1983 and host various events such as 2005 Grey Cup Championship, Vancouver Expo ‘86 Worlds Fair, the 3 Tenors, and Royal Visits.

The roof of BC Place Stadium collapsed on Jan 5, 2007.

The air-filled roof on British Columbia’s signature B.C. Place Stadium tore open Friday afternoon, foring its evacuation and raising new questions about the future of the 20-year-old building.

Workers will spend the weekend pumping water out of B.C. Place while stadium officials await the high-tech replacement material that was placed on a flight Friday after the tear.

Like a giant white souffle, the fabric roof was deflated by stadium workers after a massive tear on the southwest side ripped open in a huge semi-circle, flapping wildly in the wind.

The accident forced the closure of roads surrounding the stadium, which is located on the north side of Vancouver’s False Creek.

There were no injuries reported, but the accident could put into peril a number of trade shows during the busy spring show season. The 60,000-seat stadium is home to the B.C. Lions, this year’s Grey Cup winners. It is also slated to be the site of the opening ceremonies for the 2010 Winter Olympic Games.

Until Friday, B.C. Place was the world’s largest air-supported domed stadium covering 10 acres in all, with a circumference of 760 metres, according to the stadium’s website.

The roof comprises two layers, with a 1.2-metre space between fibreglass woven fabric membranes, which B.C. Place said are “stronger than steel.” When it snows, hot air is supposed to be pumped between these layers to melt 12 centimetres of snow per hour.

It is kept inflated with 16 fans, and the organization has said that “if the fans were turned off and the doors shut, it would take four to six hours to deflate the roof.”

Read more on: canada.com