"I got a text message early this morning that there had been a fire. I went here but by then most of the building was already gone. It's sad, says Ulf Rosin, chairman of Torshälla-Nyby IS, TNIS.
In the past, it has burned several times nearby. Someone set fire to the nearby dance floor a couple of years ago. This time, then, it was the sports club's café and changing rooms that became the prey of the flames. Only a small part of the building, which is owned by Eskilstuna's municipal property company, survived.
Balls were saved from the flames
Thanks to a quick response by the emergency services and one of the sports club's clerks, the sport itself will not suffer from the fire. During the night, they helped to throw out footballs, kits and other equipment from the burning building.
"Otherwise, we would have had six-figure financial losses," says Hans Rosin.
New dressing rooms under construction
In just a few weeks, a new building with new changing rooms is expected to be ready a stone's throw from the fire site. But it was not meant to replace the old one, but as a complement.
"We have had too few changing rooms and were happy that we would get a new building, but now that capacity is unfortunately disappearing again," says Hans Rosin.
But the worst thing is still the loss of the café. For many members, coffee break in connection with sports life is sacred, he says. In addition, the café has been a small but not insignificant source of income for the club, not least during the May Day celebrations that may now need to be cancelled.
"We're going to think about what to do during the weekend," says Hans Rosin.
In the clip above, Hans Rosin shows us around the fire site.