THE new public indoor swimming pool in Swakopmund closed its doors just before lunch on Wednesday over complaints about the poor water quality.The once sparkling blue water has turned murky green because of the rains that allegedly leaked from the roof about two weeks ago. The green is said to be the growth of algae, which is apparently not a danger to people.
This was, however, not the feeling of some swimmers who went to complain at the municipality’s health department about the possibility of harmful bacteria in the water.
Consequently, the pool was closed and water samples had been to be taken for lab testing by the Namibian Standards Institution.
Swimmers who called The Namibian voiced their disappointment, indicating that ‘they didn’t want to swim in green water’. The Namibian’s attention was later drawn to the public pool at the old Rössing Club at the smallholdings outside Swakopmund, which appears to be “even greener” than the indoor pool.
“It happens all over Namibia. When it rains, pools turn green. It’s not unsafe,” a local swimmer said. General manager of Health Services at the Swakopmund Municipality, Clive Lawrence, said that according to municipal regulations quality tests of the water have to be done on a monthly basis in any case.
“We need bacteriological analyses of the water every month to ensure the quality of the water is safe for the public to swim in. This has to be done,” he said.
There also needs to be an on-sight report of chlorine test results. All these tests are apparently lacking, hence the closure of the pool until the reports are up to date.
The privately owned Swakopmund public pool, known as the Swakopmund Water Cube, officially opened its doors in July after more than one and a half years of construction.
It is owned by the Light House Development Trust.
Attempts to get a comment from Quinton Liebenberg, who is a member of the trust, were unsuccessful.
