Structural work on the changing rooms at the national pool will be completed in April, 20 years after the first water leakage problems were first noticed.

The works, which started at the end of December, follow a visual inspection in 2013 and a detailed report last year, William Lewis, the architect for Kunsill Malti Għall-Isport, said yesterday during a site visit by Parliamentary Secretary for Sports Chris Agius.

The report uncovered faults in the deck and lining of the pool area and the railings by the audience stand. However, the most urgent issue was the changing rooms.

During an investigation carried out last year, some of the tests – like loading the roof with a large quantity of water – had to be halted immediately as the building was in dire need of repairs.

The architect said x-rays of the structure were taken to better understand the building’s design, as the original drawings could not be found. It was concluded that, while the frame of the structure was “satisfactory”, the floor of the changing rooms was overloaded.

It transpired that a thick layer of screed (torba) and stone walls, which were added along the years in these shower rooms, had added unnecessary weight to the floor, which doubles as a ceiling for the underlying plant room.

There was also a water leakage problem dating back to 1995, two years after the complex was built, which was traced to the showers in the changing rooms.

The changing and shower rooms are housed in an area measuring 50 metres by 20 metres on ground level parallel to the swimming pool. Below them is a plant room, while the floor above hosts offices of the Malta Olympics Committee and the University of Malta.

Structural work on the changing rooms started over the festive period and, since these two entities were meant to return from their shutdown yesterday, they were told to evacuate the place as a safety precaution. The €800,000 structural works should take around three months to complete.

The number of dressing rooms will increase from six to eight, and the showers will be accessible to all.

Meanwhile, temporary showers were set up in gazebos next to the pool as part of an “emergency plan”, KMS president Mark Cutajar said.

Mr Agius expressed disappointment that structural work had not kicked off earlier, as a visual report had already been carried out in 2010.