[UPDATED] LEAKY RED HOUSE

FOUR DAYS after a grand ceremonial opening of the Red House on Abercromby Street, rain fell, exposing a leaky roof in the building.

Reporters at the scene said during the rain on Tuesday afternoon, the roof of the rotunda started leaking.

According to a Udecott document detailing expenditure, the roof, and other related carpentry work cost $20.1 million.

The document also said Udecott surveyed the roof, restored and rebuilt the roof with timber and slate.

The contractor for the roof was Construction Services and Supplies Ltd.

Udecott chairman Noel Garcia, in a telephone interview, said the skylight in the rotunda, which has aluminium flashing and a rubber seal didn’t hold.

“We are going to investigate and repair it.”

A minor leak was also discovered in the Senate chamber and Garcia said water blew under the door in the House chamber.

He added that the Government will not spend any money on repairing the leaks as they were discovered during the defects liability period, which is common in construction.

The defect liability period for the Red House is one year.

“There was a lot of rain,” Garcia said. “We will rectify the problem.”

Garcia warned that there was a lot of misinformation being spread about the Red House and warned citizens not to listen to alarmists.

“Somebody said the Red House roof is rusting but copper cannot rust. The country finds it difficult to celebrate success. People try to bore holes in what is a successful restoration. Tomorrow we will investigate and then we will repair.”

Moments after the leak was discovered, during a sitting of the Senate, Opposition Senator Taharqa Obika commented that he “almost slipped and fell” and would not have expected a leak after almost half a billion was spent.

The cost to renovate and restore the Red House was $441 million, a cost Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley said was $600 million less than the Opposition had proposed. The original ornate plaster ceiling of the southern chamber of the Red House partially collapsed over 20 years ago owing to water damage caused by leaks. The chamber could not be used as a result.

By the time Parliament moved into an office tower on the waterfront, pieces of plaster had also begun to fall from the ceiling of the northern chamber, where the Lower House and the Senate sat.

At one time the Parliament Department spent $80,000 a year on tarpaulins to cover parts of the roof. Staff were told not to touch the walls when it rained in case they were shocked because the old electrical wiring was faulty.

The floor of the parliament library was covered with newspaper to soak up the water, and electronic equipment there had to be covered with garbage bags. Part of the ceiling of the senate president’s office fell in, and carpet had to be laid outside: the roof of the rotunda leaked, and a mixture of rainwater and bird droppings made the floor there dangerously slippery.

-With reporting by Judy Raymond

This story was originally published with the title "Rain exposes leaky Red House roof" and has been adjusted to include additional details. See original post below.

Four days after a grand ceremonial opening of the Red House on Abercromby Street, rain fell, exposing a leaky roof in the building.

Reporters at the scene said during rain this afternoon, the roof of the rotunda started leaking.

According to a Udecott document detailing expenditure, the roof and other related carpentry work cost $20.1 million.

The document also said Udecott surveyed the roof, restored and rebuilt the roof with timber and slate.

Udecott chairman Noel Garcia, in a telephone interview, said the skylight in the rotunda, which has aluminium flashing and a rubber seal didn't hold.

"We are going to investigate and repair it."

A minor leak was also discovered in the Senate chamber and Garcia said water blew under the door in the House chamber.

He added that the Government will not spend any money on repairing the leaks as they were discovered during the defects liability period, which is common in construction.

The defect liability period for the Red House is one year.

"There was a lot of rain," Garcia said. "We will rectify the problem."

Garcia warned that there was a lot of misinformation being spread about the Red House and warned citizens not to listen to alarmists.

"Somebody said the Red House roof is rusting but copper cannot rust. The country finds it difficult to celebrate success. People try to bore holes in what is a successful restoration. Tomorrow we will investigate and then we will repair."