Fans of Bryan Adams were left upset after a fatberg resulted in the cancellation of the singer’s concert in Australia.
The Grammy winner was set to perform at the RAC Arena in Perth on Sunday but concertgoers were told that they could not go inside the venue as the Water Corporation was working to resolve a “large blockage of fat, grease and rags” in the sewers.
A fatberg, according to the Oxford dictionary, is a “large lump or mass consisting chiefly of cooking fat that has congealed and hardened after being poured down a domestic drain”.
A major chunk of wastewater blockages seen in Perth are caused by fatbergs. The Water Corporation repeatedly urges residents to throw away fats, oils, rags, and wet wipes in the trash instead of down the drain.
Adams was scheduled to take the stage at 9pm. His support act, James Arthur, was to start performing at 7.45pm.
A trunk sewer technician holds a ‘fatberg’ taken from a sewer in London in December 2014 (AFP via Getty)
Concertgoers complained they were informed too late about the cancellation and spent hours waiting outside the venue. One fan identified only as Belinda told ABC Radio Perth that while they had been told there would be a delay due to a leak in the septic tanks, the first alert arrived 30 minutes after the doors were supposed to open. “They had a loudspeaker going, but because there were so many people it wasn’t loud enough for everyone to hear what was actually happening,” she said.
The alert was a message from the venue about an “external Water Corporation issue”.
“Due to an external Water Corporation issue, doors continue to remain closed for the time being. All efforts are being made to resolve the issue. We will continue to keep you informed,” it said.
Finally, concertgoers received a message at 9pm confirming that the concert had been postponed because the water issue “could not be resolved”.
The Water Corporation said the show was cancelled due to the “risk of sewage backing up within the venue toilets, posing a potential public health risk”.
“People should avoid contact with pooled water in the area of Wellington Street, Perth, as it may be sewage following a major blockage on a sewer main,” the agency said on its website.
Fans were appalled at how long they were made to wait. “Bryan Adams: Please forgive me, it’s the summer of s*** and urine,” one fan commented.
“People have been waiting ages to get into RAC Arena, so this should have been released, I don’t know, HOURS ago,” said another.
Adams is scheduled to play more shows in Sydney, Brisbane, and Melbourne this week.
The concert promoter confirmed on Monday that the show would not be rescheduled and that fans would be refunded for tickets. “Frontier Touring regret to advise that the sold-out Bryan Adams concert on Sunday 9 February is unable to be rescheduled,” it said. “The cancellation of the show is bitterly disappointing, and we thank fans for their understanding that while every effort was made for the show to proceed, the matter was outside of the control of Bryan Adams, Frontier Touring and RAC Arena.”
Perth Water Corporation chief executive Pat Donovan said they became aware of the blockage near the concert venue at 6pm after wastewater overflow in the underground car parking was reported.
“I assure you that our people worked really hard to clear a large blockage, which is called a fatberg, in one of our key water mains under Wellington Street,” he told 6PR on Monday morning. “We were looking at backup contingencies, which included tankering the wastewater away, but what we realised is we wouldn’t be able to keep up with 16,000 people in the venue.”
