Tag Archives: Pool and Spa Safety

by | May 9, 2011 · 10:31 am

Hospitality Industry Pool Illness Risks: Budget Deficits Risk Shutdown Of State-Run "Public Pool And Spa Inspection Programs" Putting Guests At Risk And Raising Insurance Premiums

“…it’s important that pool operators and owners of public pools in this state know that there is someone looking over their shoulder, however benign that eye may be…”

The lone state inspector, Tim Wilson, also reviews construction plans and educating operators, builders and others in the industry on the federal law, intended to prevent injury and death from improperly installed drains.

“…South Carolina considered shutting down its program several years ago because of budget problems, but the hotel and motel industry pushed to keep it to avoid increased insurance costs…The state implemented fees to support the program..”

Resort owner Peter Spanos doesn’t support big government regulations but fears a proposal to eliminate New Hampshire’s public pool and spa inspection program will mean more pool-related illnesses in a state that receives 34 million visits annually. Spanos, owner of the Shalimar Resort on Lake Winnisquam in Tilton, said that wouldn’t be good for New Hampshire’s image or his business.

The House budget cut would save $139,000. Environmental Services Commissioner Thomas Burack said without the program, people would be at greater risk of gastric illnesses and lung, skin and eye infections. New Hampshire appears to be unique in using this budget-cutting measure, and some question whether it would tarnish the state’s reputation and hurt its $4 billion tourism industry.

New Hampshire inspects nearly 1,400 public pools and spas. In the last five years, the state reported 2,211 water quality violations; 313 bacterial and 725 safety, with 224 immediate closures. Manchester, Nashua, Bedford and Merrimack do their own inspections.

For more:  http://www2.wjtv.com/lifestyles/2011/may/08/cut-would-eliminate-nhs-pool-inspection-program-ar-1817932/

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by | April 22, 2011 · 7:14 am

Hospitality Industry Pool Risks: Pennsylvania Hotel "Alcohol-Related" Hot Tub Death Highlights Dangers Of "After-Hours" Usage Of Pool And Hot Tub Rooms

“Management is now considering whether to prevent guests from being able to enter the room after hours…”

“…Hotel guests must use a plastic keycard to unlock a door to access the pool and hot tub room…Rules posted clearly on the door say it is open from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m., and guests use the pool and hot tub “at their own risk,” 

Authorities have identified John Saviello, 42, of Bridgeport, Montgomery County, as the man who died after being found unresponsive in a city hotel hot tub.

Mr. Saviello’s death Wednesday morning was ruled accidental, authorities said. He was pronounced dead at Community Medical Center after being found in a hot tub at the Clarion Hotel on Meadow Avenue.

Mr. Saviello graduated from the University of Scranton in 1992, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in biology, university spokesman Stan M. Zygmunt said.

Why he was staying at the hotel or visiting the area was not clear on Thursday.

Authorities have not yet identified a 45-year-old woman who also was found unresponsive and intoxicated in the hot tub. She was OK after being taken to Community Medical Center, Scranton Police Chief Dan Duffy said.

Lackawanna County Coroner Tim Rowland said after an autopsy that the use of drugs and alcohol might have led to Mr. Saviello’s death, but results of a toxicology report will take several weeks.

In the hotel lobby on Thursday, assistant general manager Mark D’Angelo said the staff will review safety procedures in light of the incident.

“It’s a tragedy,” Mr. D’Angelo said. “We do have to learn from it, if there are any precautions we have to take.”

Hotel guests must use a plastic keycard to unlock a door to access the pool and hot tub room, Mr. D’Angelo said. Rules posted clearly on the door say it is open from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m., and guests use the pool and hot tub “at their own risk,” he said.

Management is now considering whether to prevent guests from being able to enter the room after hours, Mr. D’Angelo said.

Read more: http://thetimes-tribune.com/news/victim-identified-in-hot-tub-drowning-1.1136101#ixzz1KGRJb400

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by | April 6, 2011 · 4:45 pm

Hospitality Industry Pool Health And Safety: Illinois Hotel Pool Shut Down By Health Officials For "Numerous Ongoing Violations"

The order is against ABVI Management, Inc., owner of America’s Best Value Inn, 140 Venita Dr., in O’Fallon. According to Madigan’s statement, the order came after the Illinois Department of Public Health and St. Clair County public health officials found…

“numerous, ongoing violations of state law that protects public health and safety and attempts to prevent the spread of infection.”

“One of the more glaring violations alleges an inspector with the St. Clair County Health Department observed on Feb. 11 that hotel management had reopened the swimming pool and had removed the IDPH closure order notice after the agency inspected the pool and shut it down Jan. 19 for failing to address violations found in earlier inspections.”

Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan has obtained a temporary restraining order against an O’Fallon hotel, ordering it to keep its swimming pool closed until health officials get to the bottom of “numerous, ongoing violations” involving health and sanitation violations.

From the statement: A hearing on the injunction will be held April 6. “If you travel with children as I do, where’s the first place they beg to go after check-in ─ the pool, of course,” Madigan said in the statement. “Travelers and parents shouldn’t have to worry about hotel management not doing its job to keep pools safe, clean and free of hazards.”

An employee of the hotel contacted this evening said the pool is closed. A spokesman for management of the hotel wasn’t immediately available.

For more:  http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/political-fix/article_cff335ea-5b2f-11e0-a0dd-00127992bc8b.html

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by | March 30, 2011 · 11:08 am

Hotel Pool Safety Risks: "Heavily Drinking Man" Drowns At Florida Hotel "Music Week Festival" Pool Party

The busy Miami Music Week festival claimed at least one life this weekend when a man drowned during a pool party at the Clevelander hotel. The 40-year-old man from out of town was swimming in the hotel’s pool after drinking heavily and drowned. The hotel was hosting the Nervous Pool Party at the time.

CBSMiami reports that the drowning occurred late Sunday afternoon. The man slipped below the surface, and despite efforts by onlookers to save him and perform CPR, he died.

The station also reports that the man and his friends were believed to be drinking heavily before going in the pool.

The Nervous Pool Party 2 was headlined by superstar DJs like Oscar G, Ralph Falcon, and Junior Sanchez.

For more:  http://blogs.miaminewtimes.com/riptide/2011/03/man_drowns_during_pool_party_a.php#

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by | March 20, 2011 · 12:04 pm

Hotel Industry Pool Risks: Texas Hotel Indoor Pool Chlorination System Sickens Dozens Of Guests

Dozens of people, mostly children, were treated for unknown respiratory ailments Saturday after swimming in a South Lubbock hotel pool.

First responders set up a medical triage in front of Embassy Suites hotel, Slide Road and South Loop 289, to treat 24 people who started having trouble breathing while in and around the hotel’s indoor swimming pool.

None of the patients’ ailments were considered life-threatening, said Chris Teague, director of Lubbock EMS.

Investigators with the city and Fire Marshal’s Office believe the problem happened when an automatic pool chlorination system released too much of the cleaning agent into the water, said Elliot Eldredge with the Lubbock Fire Marshal’s Office.

Several parents and children who were in the pool area at about 5 p.m. said they noticed an overwhelming smell of chlorine coming from the pool.

Many of the children in the pool started coughing and immediately evacuated the room.

For more:  http://lubbockonline.com/local-news/2011-03-20/dozens-treated-respiratory-ailments-south-lubbock-hotel-pool

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by | February 13, 2011 · 1:56 pm

Hotel Industry Pool Safety: Two Small Boys Nearly Drown In "Extremely Crowded" Pool Conditions At New York Hotel Pool

“They were both breathing when they left the pool,” said Cheektowaga Sgt. Brian Gould. “I know the one kid was coughing up water. The other was a little more serious.”

Two boys were rushed to the hospital late Saturday night after nearly drowning at a hotel pool in Cheektowaga. The boys, ages 9 and 10, were taken to Women and Children’s Hospital after the incident in the Millennium Hotel pool on Walden Avenue. Both are expected to live, according to Cheektowaga police.

Police and emergency crews were called to the hotel at 2040 Walden Ave., near the Walden Galleria, at about 9:45 p. m. Saturday for the report of a possible drowning, police officials said. The hotel pool was “extremely crowded” when, at some point, the two boys went under water, Gould said.

Police are still trying to determine what happened and what the boys were doing at the time they went under. Gould credited some of the people at the pool for their quick action, which probably saved the lives of the two boys.

For more:  http://www.buffalonews.com/city/communities/cheektowaga/article340606.ece

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by | February 8, 2011 · 10:29 am

Hotel Industry Pool And Spa Risks: Michigan Hotel Faces Legal Issues After Guests Develop Skin Rashes From Bacterial “Accumulation Of Growth” After Pool And Spa Not Properly Backwashed And Chlorinated

A hockey team and parents from Illinois stayed at the hotel Jan. 18 and 19, and all 11 boys who went in the water developed a rash within 24 hours, said …a mother of one of the boys.

“…the health department inspected the pool Jan. 20 and told hotel managers that the pool and spa had to be backwashed. Managers were told to change the method used to chlorinate the water…”

“…she is retaining an attorney to compel the hotel to reimburse the traveling party for its rooms and medical bills…”

The hot tub at Holiday Inn-Southgate Banquet & Conference Center was closed for one day recently after several 7- and 8-year-old boys got bumpy, red rashes. According to Wayne County Department of Public Health documents, the tub and pool were inspected after a parent’s complaint and health officials told hotel management to close the tub for maintenance.

The investigation found a bacterial “accumulation of growth” on the hot tub and pool filter, and the hotel also had to sanitize those. The hot tub also was drained.

According to the health department, the hotel followed all of the changes and recommendations, and the hot tub was reopened the next day.

LoPresti said the hockey group received a gift certificate for one night’s stay free at the hotel for its inconvenience, but she doesn’t find that acceptable. “We wanted answers, (and) corporate and (the) local manager will not return the team’s calls,” she said. LoPresti said she did receive an e-mail from hotel management explaining its cleaning procedures and apologizing for any discomfort.

LoPresti said she is retaining an attorney to compel the hotel to reimburse the traveling party for its rooms and medical bills.

For more:  http://thenewsherald.com/articles/2011/02/08/news/doc4d4c7aeb6802b829841452.txt?viewmode=fullstory

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by | December 27, 2010 · 9:42 am

Hotel Pool Safety And Health: Use Of A “Food Grade Enzyme” Can Reduce High Phosphate Levels In Hotel Swimming Pools That Result In “Overchlorination”, Leading To Guest Eye Irritation, Lung Damage And Asthma

The Clarion Hotel in Portland cut its chlorine use by 87 percent.

The phosphates reduce the chlorine’s effectiveness. Adding a food grade enzyme to the water reduces the phosphate level and allows chlorine to do its work. Not only is less chlorine needed, but it also lasts longer, Cooke said.

The pool was part of a test project with the state of Maine Department of Environmental Protection to help reduce use of the chemical, which has been linked to skin and eye irritations, lung damage and asthma. The project also saved some money.

“It is very easy,” said Peter Cooke, DEP pollution prevention program manager. The agency funded the project with a $30,000 federal grant. Overchlorination is common at public swimming pools because of the high levels of phosphates, Cooke said. Phosphates occur naturally in some water but are commonly added by water treatment plants to prevent corrosion in municipal water pipes.

The phosphates reduce the chlorine’s effectiveness. Adding a food grade enzyme to the water reduces the phosphate level and allows chlorine to do its work. Not only is less chlorine needed, but it also lasts longer, Cooke said.

Don Hopkins, operations manager for the Olympia Companies, property management company of the Clarion Hotel, said regular swimmers at the pool immediately noticed a difference.

“They said it smelled better and the water felt softer on the skin, ” Hopkins said.

He said workers at the hotel also noticed the difference. Hopkins said adding the enzyme to the 30,000-gallon pool saved $200 a month in chlorine costs, compared to the $130 monthly cost of the enzyme. The company is now looking to reduce chlorine at pools at some of its other hotel properties, he said.

For more:  http://www.onlinesentinel.com/news/using-enzyme-reduces-need-for-pool-chlorine_2010-12-21.html#

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by | December 12, 2010 · 8:19 am

Hotel Pool Safety: Hotel Owners Should Review Designs Of Fountains, Drains And Water Troughs To Prevent Drownings

Hyatt spokesman Pete Hillan says the hotel has emptied the fountain and erected a barrier around the 29-inch-deep trough where the boy was found.

The barrier will serve as a temporary solution, as hotel officials look to permanently change the fountain’s design.

A toddler found floating in a fountain at a downtown hotel suffered life-threatening injuries.

The unidentified boy remains hospitalized, a day after officers pulled him from a decorative fountain at the  Hyatt Regency Hotel and revived him using CPR.

The officers went to the hotel after the 18-month-old boy’s mother reported him missing. Fire officials tell the San Francisco Chronicle the incident appeared to be an accident.

Hyatt spokesman Pete Hillan says the hotel has emptied the fountain and erected a barrier around the 29-inch-deep trough where the boy was found. The trough serves as the fountain’s drain.

For more:  http://www.wsbt.com/news/ktla-fountain-toddler,0,1847787.story

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by | September 18, 2010 · 9:43 am

Hotel Industry Pool Safety: Mitch Stoller Of “Safe Kids USA” Speaks On Child Safety At Swimming Pools And Spas (Video)

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W6B-MB_67j4]

Pool Safely Press Conference – Mitch Stoller, Safe Kids USA

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