Manchester gay sauna closed today after fire

The H2O sauna in Manchester’s gay district is closed today after a small fire broke out on the premises yesterday afternoon.

The sauna confirmed to PinkNews.co.uk today that it would be reopening tomorrow.

The fire at the Sackville Street site, just off Canal Street, was not the result of arson.

In a similar incident last year, a fire which broke out at the Shoreditch Chariots sauna in London was ultimately deemed not to be suspicious.

By the time firemen arrived at the site at 6am, around 150 gay men had been evacuated from the four storey building into a spring morning without any injuries.

The Finnish hot rooms, which have been used for health purposes for centuries, are believed by some to burn as many as 300 calories by speeding up the body’s metabolism.

It is not known how many calories are burned in the evacuation of a gay sauna.