An arena is a place where small communities gather, cheering on the home teams especially during the winter months.

But during regular maintenance at the Didsbury Memorial Complex Arena, a contractor noticed the ammonia levels were off.

After an investigation, they found the condenser unit was leaking and couldn’t be replaced.

That news was devastating for Didsbury Mayor Rhonda Hunter.

“Right at that moment, your heart sinks,” explained Hunter. “Cause you know how important an arena is in a small town like Didsbury, and how everything that happens in small towns in the winter happens at the arena.”

The arena will remain closed until the spring when a new condenser can be installed.

And while the loss is big for those who use the facility, the town was expected to host four hockey tournaments, two bonspiels, and the seniors stick curling provincials.

Losing those, according to Didsbury’s director of community services, Nicole Aasen, will also make an impact throughout the town’s economy.

“All those other things like our gas stations, our hotels… All of the things that benefit from us bringing people to the community will be impacted as well,” Aasen explained.

In October of 2017, just across the Alberta-B.C. border, a deadly ammonia leak occurred at the Fernie Memorial Arena, killing two city employees and a refrigeration contractor from Turner Valley, Alta.

An investigation found a pinhole leak in a component of the arena’s refrigeration system allowed ammonia to mix with a brine solution, eventually bursting a pipe and leaking fatal concentrations of gas into the air, according to the report.

Residents in Didsbury are disappointed about the closure, but Llonda Leaber is glad it was caught before something serious happened.

“Maybe still keep some of the kids active, we’ll have to find some other things for them to do,” Leaber said.

“We’re just happy nobody got hurt.”

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According to the town, the condenser was slated to be replaced in 2027. Mayor Hunter says the town’s reserves are in good shape, but moving this project up will cause other items in the capital plan to get postponed.

And it is of course winter in Alberta, so the town is already getting ideas from residents about locations for a possible outdoor rink.

In the meantime, other communities have reached out saying they can spare some of their ice time at their rinks to make sure residents still have options for the rest of the season.