Ice-castle workers using picks and shovels following equipment failure

It's taken more grunt work than expected to construct a monstrous ice castle in Edmonton's Hawrelak Park.

In light of equipment breakdowns over the holidays, artisans and other workers building the winter attraction have been forced to use ice picks and shovels to get the job done.

Ice Castles, LLC,a Utah-based entertainment company that specializes in large-scale events made ofice,partnered with the City of Edmonton andSilver Skate Festival to bring the winter attraction to Edmonton.

Crafted by hand using only icicles and water, the 27,200-tonne ice castle will have tunnels, a waterfall, ice slide and a throne room.

The massive structure is set to open to the public on Wednesday.

"Oh, we've got many, many tonnesof ice we need to remove, " said the project's chief artisanCory Livingood.

"The way we build,we use sprinklers.So there is over-spray that builds up on the grounds around the towers, and we need to remove that and level it out so people can walk through."

However, Livingood is confidentthe project willopen on time. He says he has faced similar issues in the past and hopes to get mechanics in to fix the heavy equipment.

"I will do what I canto get it done."

Edmonton is the first Canadian city Ice Castleshas visited.