Phoenix ice rink sustains serious damage from storms, fire

Ice rink in Phoenix scrambles to make repairs after storm, fire damage

AZ Ice Arcadia in Phoenix is scrambling to repair the damage it sustained after the winds from the weekend storms started a fire.

PHOENIX - A Phoenix ice rink was badly damaged after the storms on Sept. 27.

What we know:

The AZ Ice Arcadia rink in Central Phoenix is closed as officials scramble to make repairs, forcing games and practices to be put on hold. 

The rink, located near the corner of 38th Street and Thomas Road, took a serious shot from Mother Nature Saturday night when strong winds damaged the building and started a fire. 

It could be weeks before the building is fully repaired.

Dig deeper:

Cleanup continues inside the arena after the strong storm caused serious damage to the big concrete building.

"The first thing there was an explosion that happened in the building, but it ended up being the roof being torn off by the microburst in the area," said General Manager Jim Curley.

Curley gave a tour of the damage, which included very few working lights and debris covering the ice itself. In the upstairs locker rooms, a hole was punched through the roof right next to where an electrical fire began. Dust and debris also fell from the ceiling onto everything below.

"We’ve been just trying to pick up the pieces for right now while we figure out what the next move is," Curley said.

A drone looking above the building showed a huge section of the roof separated and barely hanging on. The building’s satellite dish was also thrown onto the roof of the building next door.

"We’ve been working with all the other companies in town to find as much ice time as we can for everybody. That’s been a little bit of a challenge while we’re also trying to clean up the damage and repair," Curley said.

Big picture view:

The rink is used by several youth teams and Grand Canyon University club teams. Curley said the rink is not a cash cow, so they're scrambling to find money to get players back on the ice as soon as possible.

"It’s a large expense on the building we don’t own, but we don’t do it for the money," Curley said. "We do it for the community, for the kids, and you know that’s really the end goal here."

What's next:

Curley hopes to have practice started in the coming days, but the full repair job may take several weeks. Damage estimates are reaching close to $1 million.

Map of the location of the ice rink.