No relief from the heat as Johannesburg shuts public swimming pools

Johannesburg's public pools will be closed as the school holidays and summer approach. This may be the last weekend for the foreseeable future when communities in Johannesburg will be able to access a public swimming pool. The Johannesburg municipality this week decided to shut all its public swimming pools from next week until further notice. From Monday 16 November, all public swimming pools will be closed due to what the municipality states is a critical shortage of chlorine supplies. Temperatures are set to peak in the thirties this weekend, with the South African Weather Service predicting a hotter-than-average summer. The city’s department of community development acknowledged the “immense frustration” the decisions would cause, but stressed that untreated pools pose a health risk to swimmers. Emergency procurement protocols The department stated that it had activated “emergency procurement protocols” to purchase chlorine and other necessary pool chemicals. The worst-affected pools could close earlier than Monday, with the department claiming technical teams will begin work as soon as stock is replenished. “We know how vital our public pools are to families and young people trying to beat the heat right now, and we share the community’s disappointment. “However, the health and safety of our residents must always come first. Operating unchlorinated pools is unsafe, so we made the difficult decision to close the facilities while we urgently resolve this supply chain disruption,” stated community development acting director Mbulelo Bezu. The acting director asked communities to exercise patience, but did not commit to a projected reopening schedule. “We anticipate reopening pools once the process is complete and will provide daily progress updates until doors open,” Bezu stated. Reopening delays The municipality missed its initial 1 September reopening date, only reopening a select number of pools in mid-October after missing a revised 1 October deadline. The chemicals shortage and an insufficient number of lifeguards and cashiers were cited as the reason for the late opening. At least 3 750kg of swimming pool chemicals were sourced in October to facilitate the reopening of 26 of the city’s 57 public pools. Additionally, the city required 160 lifeguards and 40 additional chasiers to ensure the facilities were adequately staffed. In the two and a half months since the expected 1 September reopening, no public pool in Johannesburg would have been open for more than 39 days as of Monday’s closure.