How To Safely Open Swimming Pools During COVID-19 Pandemic

Local governments are beginning to allow swimming pools and other aquatic facilities to reopen as restrictions ease across the country. Lifesaving Resources can provide guidance and training to facilities looking to safely reopen their doors. The guidelines below are based on current advice from the Scientific Advisory Council on COVID-19 and Aquatics.

How does a pool or aquatic facility know if it can reopen?

The primary factor is to determine laws in the local community. The federal government has released guidelines including Opening Up American Again from the White House and the more specific considerations from the CDC for public pools and water playgrounds. Specific guidelines for opening a swim facility or similar will be handed down on a regional level. Likely, local regulations will include limits to capacity and updated lifeguard training.

What new procedures should a swimming pool have to reopen?

Reopening a swimming pool, water park or other aquatic facility in the age of  COVID-19 will require a reassessment of policies and the creation of new procedures to address safely managing visitors, responding to emergencies and keeping staff mindful of the new reality resulting from the Coronavirus. Considerations to reopen include:

• How will customers/patrons/visitors be kept socially distant from each other?
• How will safety personnel/lifeguards use, store and maintain personal protective equipment?
• How will common areas and high-tough surfaces be disinfected? In particular, restrooms and changing areas.
• What are local guidelines for employees returning to work as it relates to COVID-19 testing? Will on-site screening be necessary? Can employees self-certify?
• Do local rules require guests to be screened?
• Many jurisdictions require masks while in public areas, how would this be interpreted for around a pool or other aquatic facility?
• If a guest or employee is found to be sick, what procedures will be followed? Will closure be required, or local health department notification? What additional sanitizing procedure will be needed? How will an employee or visitor be isolated and removed from the facility?
• Lifeguards watching swimmers should not take on additional responsibility of ensuring COVID-19 policies around the pool area are followed. Facilities must continue to adhere to proper Standard of Care in Lifeguarding.
• If contact tracing is required, a procedure must exist to track visitors and employees with necessary contact information.
• Following an employee illness, what are guidelines for returning to work?
• Can some staff members work remotely once facility reopens?
• Will masks be provided to staff and/or guests that need one? How will they be sourced?

Following new COVID procedures should fall under the clear authority of a specific staff member to ensure compliance and to ensure they do not place a burden on those assigned to active lifeguarding duties.

How should pool decks, changing areas and swimming areas be managed?

Prior to reopening, a signage plan will need to be implemented. Once again, these plans will be specific to your local government’s guidelines.

Lifeguards

As mentioned previously, lifeguards on active swimmer safety duty must not be assigned COVID-19 related tasks.

Swim Facility Proper Distancing

Capacity of swim facility as a whole, as well as areas including locker rooms, changing areas and offices must be determined. There should be proper signage and a procedure for managing these limits. For example, how will limits on number of people in locker rooms be kept in check?

Distancing of Swimmers

Swimmers should be instructed to keep proper distance from each other in the swimming pool. Facilities may want to utilize a guard with the specific purpose of keeping an eye on distance between swimmers.

Pool Deck

Chairs should be reconfigured to adhere to distancing rules. Total capacity may be reduced resulting in storage of some chairs. Excess chairs should be stored out of reach of visitors to help reduce crowding.

Food Service Areas

Food service may have different regulations in your jurisdiction. A facility offering food should ensure local guidelines for that aspect of the business are closely followed.

Creation of Visual and Physical Guides

Visual guides may include marks at proper distance on ground in changing or food service areas; or arrows guiding guest flow around swimming pool. Physical guides may include arrangement of chairs on deck.

Hygiene Areas

Additional areas may need to be created to allow guests and staff to maintain proper hand cleanliness. This includes an ample supply of soap, hand sanitizer, paper towels and no-touch trash cans. Supplies in these areas must be maintained, restocked and cleaned frequently.

In particular, hand hygiene areas should be placed:

• At facility entrance
• At areas of food service
• Entrance to staff break rooms
• Entrance to locker rooms and/or changing areas
• Near pool for use after exiting water

Signage Requirements

At minimum, new signage should be placed to address the following:

• Cloth face covering requirements
• Facility entrance screening criteria
• Encouragement of proper hygiene, including keeping hands clean, and covering mouth for cough or sneeze
• Social distancing requirements
• Swimmer distancing rules

Attention should be brought to any policies changed from normal operations, such as limits to number of people in swimming pool, contact rules in pool or closures of certain areas.

The CDC provides posters for swimming facilities to use, although these are not specific to the Coronavirus or COVID-19 precautions.

Shared Equipment

Visitors should be discouraged from sharing items that are difficult to sanitize, particularly those that come in contact with the face, such as goggles or snorkels.

Facilities may want to limit use of shared equipment to one group at a time to allow for proper cleaning.

Managing Swimming Pool Activities

To help protect swimmers from COVID-19, additional precautions may be put into place impacting in-pool activities. These may include:

• If lap swimming occurs, lanes may need to be reconfigured based on lane width
• Organized aquatic classes may need to reduce class size based on available exercise area to allow for proper distancing
• Awareness of any changes to use of swimming pool that may impact location of different skill swimmers

In light of distance requirements necessitated by COVID-19, there are activities that should not take place upon reopening of a swimming pool. This includes any sport or activity that places swimmers in close proximity of each other, such as water polo.

Managing High Risk Swimmers

Swim facilities with high-risk visitors should consider implementing additional rules such as:

• Adding specific pool times for those at high risk, such as early morning swim hours prior to arrival of general patrons
• Suggested areas marked for use by those at risk for more serious issues

What COVID-19 changes to pool / hot tub maintenance and cleaning should be made?

Scientists currently believe that free chlorine and bromine are adequate to neutralize SARS-CoV-2 when used at proper levels.

Recommended Pool Chemical levels

Free chlorine from 2ppm to 4ppm with a maximum of 10ppm is suggested to ensure circulating water in a pool or hot tub is disinfected.

Bromine at 4ppm to 6ppm with a maximum of 8ppm is also acceptable. Of course never mix chlorine and bromine.

Testing Chemical Levels for protection against COVID-19

Testing pool pH and disinfectant levels should be done on a frequent basis and from different areas of the pool or hot tub to ensure proper distribution of disinfectants.

The ideal pH range is from 7.4 to 7.6 to ensure proper disinfection rates.

Cleaning Pool Facilities

To ensure proper cleaning of the property, facilities should refer to the Environmental Protection Agency List N: Disinfectants for Use Against SARS-CoV-2.

Dangers of Enhanced Cleaning Procedures

As new chemicals are introduced to the maintenance process, it is critical to refer to your Certified Pool Operator or equivalent to ensure disinfectants are safe for use in contact with chlorinated pool water.

Supplemental Disinfecting Procedures

Frequently touched areas should be kept clean, shared objects after each use.

• Handrails
• Slides
• Climbing / play structures
• Lounge chairs
• Table tops
• Pool noodles
• kick boards
• Door handles
• Restroom surfaces
• Diaper changing stations
• Showers

New Organizational Procedures

Along with the new procedures in cleaning and disinfecting items, pool facilities must also create systems to clearly track and separate disinfected items from non-cleaned items.

• How will lounge chairs that need to be cleaned be identified and separated from those that have been cleaned?
• Once chairs / furniture are disinfected, how will they be kept from becoming contaminated before use?
• Towel laundering is more important than ever. Ensure proper amounts of soap are used, items are washed in the warmest advised temperature and that they are dried completely.
• Be aware of items used by multiple staff members, ensure containers are kept clean.
• With the introduction of new cleaning chemicals, ensure safe storage away from guest access.