Prelim. Investigation into 'Chlorine incident' released... (updated)

Courtesy of the City of Williams Lake:

Update at 6:24pm - Video from today's Press Conference which you can view here

The City of Williams Lake has completed its preliminary investigation into the chlorine incident at Sam Ketcham Pool at the Cariboo Memorial Recreation Complex Feb. 26.

On February 26, 2012 at approximately 8:15 am there was a chlorine gas release in the swimming pool facility at the Cariboo Memorial Recreation Complex during a Blue Fins swim meet, which hosted a team from Quesnel and a team from Prince George.
Complex staff, who are trained in how to respond to emergencies, evacuated the pool area and the entire Complex. First responders from the RCMP, Williams Lake Fire Department, Wildwood Fire Department, 150 Mile Fire Department, and the B.C Ambulance Service attended the Complex to assist those affected. The gas release resulted in 70 people being treated for exposure to the chlorine gas at Cariboo Memorial Hospital. Most were treated and released quickly, while one 8-year-old boy was kept in hospital until today.

“Our staff and first responders did an excellent job in caring for the children and those affected,” says Mayor Kerry Cook. “And throughout the day, we saw the community come together. The RCMP brought in extra resources, doctors came into the hospital on a Sunday, and nurses took on extra duties to treat the people in the emergency room.”

The ice rinks at the Complex were re-opened to the public at 11 a.m., while the pool, reception area, fitness centre, and Gibraltar Room remained closed. The Gibraltar Room and reception area re-opened Tuesday, and the fitness centre re-opened Wednesday.

As a result of the incident, a Joint Union/Management investigation was undertaken to investigate the incident. The investigation team also included an external health and safety consultant. Members of Council and the Cariboo Regional District Board of Directors were advised of the preliminary findings yesterday.

The following is a summary of the preliminary findings:

The wading pool and hot tub are drained in advance of swim meets. It is normal practice to drain those pools before swim meets, for the safety of spectators and swimmers. Due to the arrangement of temporary bleachers for swim meets lifeguards are not able to see these pools. On Saturday evening maintenance was conducted as normal, and all pool chemical readings were normal. Maintenance is performed every two hours, and was performed right up until the incident. As per usual procedure, a staff member began the process of refilling the wading pool and hot tub Sunday morning, in anticipation of public swim events later that day after the swim meet. Swimmers were already in the pool warming up. The staff member did visual checks of all equipment before beginning the refilling process. During the filling process, the staff member noted a strong chlorine smell. At which time, the filling process was stopped and lifeguards were told to start an evacuation. Lifeguards evacuated the pool area and change rooms into the main lobby. Lifeguards began administering oxygen to the children who needed it the most. 911 was called at 8:17 am and the entire pool was evacuated in less than 5 minutes. Lifeguards then moved everyone to the arena area . Ambulance and Fire Department arrived first and then First Responders and Hazmat Team arrived and took over the evacuation procedure. The Fire Department called for an entire facility evacuation, including both hockey rinks and all dressing rooms. The Complex staff assisted with this evacuation.

The preliminary investigation indicates that the chlorine gas release was the result of a failed vacuum regulator, which allowed chlorine gas to fill water delivery pipes and the filter system. On the morning of the swim meet when the wading pool was being filled with water, gas that had built up in the pipes and filters was pushed by water into the wading pool. Further investigation is ongoing to determine the cause of the mechanical failure.

Based on the results of this preliminary investigation, City staff will consult with Interior Health as the regulators of public swimming pools in the province and will be exploring what options are available to sanitize the water in the short term and the long term. In the meantime, the main pool, wading pool and hot tub will remain closed to the public.

“The safety and well-being of children, parents and staff is the number one issue. Now our focus is to finalize the investigation report and looking at options to safely re-open the pool.”

The City would like to stress that while the main pool tank and underground water piping have been problematic, it is in no way related to this incident.

More information will be released when it becomes available.

For more information please contact:

Brian Carruthers - Chief Administrative Officer
The City of Williams Lake
Ph: 250-392-1763
Email: bcarruthers@williamslake.ca