Abandoned leisure centre left to rot - with grim murky water left behind
An abandoned UK leisure centre has been left to rot, with grim murky water still in its swimming pool.
Inside the once luxury attraction, its swimming pools and diving boards remain as they were in its heyday. It still has functioning electricity, and water remains in the pool, but has turned green and murky. But the former Cascades Leisure Centre in Portadown, Northern Ireland still has spectator stands which are in good working order.
Cascades has been abandoned since August 2020 after the £30million South Lake Leisure Complex opened nearby. Jordan L from London wanted to capture the building before it's gone forever and took photographs once inside. She said: "It was the main leisure centre for Portadown and the surrounding area that offered a gym, swimming pool and hot tub facilities, a steam room and more.
The leisure centre was once the main attraction for those in Portadown, Northern Ireland but has now seen better days (mediadrumimages/Lost.Ireland)"It was one of three leisure centres closed and scheduled for demolition after five months, but for some reason this still hasn't happened as of 2023."
She spent around two hours at the centre and found the old pool and once-popular facilities fascinating. She said: "It was a very fun explore due to how bright and airy it was and how large the site was. The pools were very interesting and it even had working electricity. I loved how huge the pool was. The diving boards were cool too and I had to get an obligatory photo standing on them. The only 'scary' thing about the place was almost falling off the top diving board when posing for a picture."
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Other images show the stands and diving boards left in good condition (mediadrumimages/Lost.Ireland)Meanwhile, the Mirror also revealed how an abandoned leisure centre was transformed by a community of squatters before they were kicked out - leaving the place frozen in time. Chorlton Leisure Centre in Manchester closed in 2015, despite last ditch attempts by campaigners to run it as a not-for-profit centre.
Following its closure, the building was taken over a number of times by a community of squatters who said they had big plans to bring the building back into use. Some of the squatters' ambitious plans to reopen the facility to the public included building a skate park inside. They claimed to have fixed leaks, refilled the swimming pool and plumbed in the sauna.
The water left has gone murky and green (mediadrumimages/Lost.Ireland)But in 2019, the community of squatters who had taken up residence in the derelict building were kicked out for a second time by bailiffs. Plans have been discussed to demolish the building and turn the space into dozens of affordable homes for older people. Urban explorer Kyle Urbex took a look inside the now abandoned building and took photos showing how squatters had left it.
His pictures showed signs of the squatters' lifestyle in the building, with graffiti and artwork adorning the walls, invites to workshops, and even a performance area for buskers. He added: "It felt very eerie inside because in parts some of the electricity was still active, which made me wonder why. But this is the first time an explorer has managed to capture internal pictures and I'm glad I was the one to do it, that's for sure!"
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