Slide’s closing disappoints users
Playground feature’s popularity results in temporary closure by council to double check safety bolts
Anderson Park’s twisted beige slide is so popular that the Napier City Council has had to close it for safety checks.
The slide, which one Napier resident has compared to a prop out of an Alfred Hitchcock film, has been temporarily closed just two weeks after the newly nature-themed playground reopened.
The Napier City Council says since the slide has been in such high demand with members of the public it has had to close it to check the bolts which hold it together.
Despite the slide being out of bounds for safety purposes, the excited spirits of both children and adults have been dampened by the sudden closure.
Communications specialist for the Napier City Council Tania McCauley says it is normal for equipment in new playgrounds to be checked after opening.
“Also it’s been built to New Zealand playground safety standards,” she says.
The slide has become increasingly popular since the recent opening of Anderson Park Playground and, while some are hesitant about the safety of its build, others are positive in believing that it builds self confidence and risk taking for children.
Napier resident Sally Ralph commented on Facebook that she has seen plenty of excited children using the slide in recent weeks.
“My granddaughter was too scared to do it at first, but when she did she came down screaming, laughing and smiling, and I watched many other children slide down with big grins, great confidence booster, I hope the slide reopens soon.”
Another Facebook member agreed saying that if parents are concerned about children hurting themselves, they should use “common sense and watch their kids”. McCauley said the slide meets high safety standards.
“It’s also been checked by Future Landscapes Ltd, a licensed playground auditing company, for compliance with this standard.”
It’s not just the children who are disappointed by the slide’s closure, but adults as well, with some families travelling from Havelock and Hastings only to discover the slide was closed.
The city council plans to have the slide ready to use by the end of this week.
The slide’s closure does not affect the rest of the playground, which opened earlier than expected this month, just in time for the second week of the school holidays.