Volunteers Armed With Knives in Hveragerði

Armed with knives, volunteers showed up in the town Hveragerði, Southwest Iceland, Saturday morning at 9 am, mbl.is reports. Their goal: to cut down the deflated sports center that blew off its base in severe weather February 22. (See our report here ).

The white, 5,000 m2 (54,000 sq ft) inflated sports center, called Hamarshöllin, was built in 2012. It included an artificial grass field, a nine-hole putting course and a multi-purpose athletic court. It had survived many a storm, but the strong winds of February proved more than it could stand.

The insurance company Sjóvá gave Hamar, the Hveragerði sports club, permission to use the plastic sheet for fundraising. The decision was made to advertise the material for sale at ISK 1,500 per square meter, or to the highest bidder.

Þórhallur Einisson, who heads Hamar, states that demand is considerable. The size of the sheet is about 6,000 m2 (65,000 sq ft), about half of which has already been sold. He expects more orders to come in today, and the rest will be cut down and sold in sections.

“People are using this for all sorts of shelters: for covering buildings or pavilions, and youth associations and municipalities are purchasing larger pieces for use in recreational races,” Þórhallur explains.

The proceeds will be used to support the operation of Hamar, especially for its younger athletes.