O2 arena in London sets reopening date after Storm Eunice shreds roof

The O2 arena will remain closed until Friday after part of its roof was ripped off by Storm Eunice.

Repair work is underway after sections of the London venue's covering were torn away from supporting ribs by high winds on Friday (February 18).

A number of events, which had been due to go ahead next week, have been rescheduled due to the closure.

A statement from the venue said: “The O2 prides itself on being a venue full of entertainment but following Friday’s storm, we’re not quite looking our best.

“We want to continue to provide a safe and secure best-in-class experience for our visitors, so we have made the decision to remain closed until Friday February 25 to give us time to carry out some necessary works on our roof.”

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Rescheduled concert dates include UB40 to February 25, Simply Red to March 2 and 3, The Lumineers to March 4, and Davido to March 5.

New dates for rapper Dave’s postponed concerts will be announced within the next 48 hours.

Dave’s gigs were supposed to take place on Monday and Tuesday of next week. The Greenwich venue has said that all tickets will remain valid for the new dates.

In a statement provided by The O2, Dave said he will be “back with a plan” by the end of Monday.

The O2 Arena in London after parts of its roof were ripped off in high winds Credit: Dominic Lipinski/PA

“Devastating news, The O2 have told us Monday and Tuesday’s shows can’t happen due to what the storm did to the roof of the venue,” he said.

“We are doing everything we can to reschedule the shows to play as soon as humanly possible.

“Right now we do not know when The O2 arena will be open again for events but they’ve told us it shouldn’t be too long.

“We await information from the venue. I’ll be back with a plan as soon as I have it. By the end of Monday I hope.”

Events at The O2’s smaller venue, The Indigo, are expected to resume after February 25.

The O2 has the second highest capacity of any indoor venue in the UK, surpassed only by the Manchester Arena.

It was originally built as the Millennium Dome, and used to house an exhibition celebrating the turn of the new millennium.