Strong winds toppled a brick chimney at Forbury Park in Dunedin yesterday, smashing a hole in the grandstand roof and damaging seating.
Forbury Park Trotting Club general manager John Ayoub arrived at work about 8am and saw 6m of the top of a brick chimney had fallen through the grandstand roof.
Seating in the old public stand was smashed.
Mr Ayoub initially feared someone could have been hurt, because homeless people sometimes sheltered there.
He called emergency services and firefighters searched the rubble.
No-one was found.
A function room underneath the grandstand was not damaged, he said.
The club planned to demolish the grandstand and rebuild on top of the function room in the next two or three years.
The disused chimney was to be demolished next summer.
A Fire Service spokesman said Dunedin firefighters were called to several incidents relating to strong wind yesterday, including roofing iron lifting from houses in St Kilda and St Clair.
Firefighters attended to powerlines down in Green Island and Shiel Hill about 8.30am, he said.
MetService said wind gusts of about 60kmh were recorded overnight in Dunedin.
