Bagwell Gym Floor Damaged by Water

The damage to a portion of one of the gym floors at the Larry D. Bagwell Gym caused by a broken fire sprinkler head will cost $50,000 to be repaired, according to the Easley Parks and Recreation Committee.

The wood floor in Gym C at the Bagwell Gym was damaged after a stray basketball knocked one of the fire sprinkler heads loose. The incident happened in early July and a contractor hired by the city has been working to dry the wood floors over the past three weeks.

"Part of the floor is buckled, some of it is wavy," City Administrator Jonathan "Fox" Simons said. "Fortunately it's not the entire gym -- it's hit or miss, some spots are and some spots are fine."

Simons said the city received an estimate to repair the floor at approximately $50,000. The repairs will be covered by insurance and work is scheduled to start Wednesday morning.

"Gym C will be closed from here until they are finished," Simons said.

The entire floor will need to be stripped in order to aid the drying of the wood but only certain sections will need to be replaced.

The incident occurred during a YMCA day camp.

"It wasn't malicious and they had supervision," Simons said. "They've been hit before."

"I'm more concerned about how we're going to fix the problem," Mayor Larry Bagwell said. "How are we going to protect the [sprinkler] head because it's going to happen again?"

Simons said the city will be working with two companies to find a solution over the coming weeks.