If you don’t change your shoes and enter the pool, the bacteria will exceed the standard by 5 times. Is this the same with the swimming pool you went to？

　　Xinhua News Agency, Beijing, August 8th Question: Did you go to the swimming pool without changing your shoes, the bacteria exceeded the standard by 5 times, and the lifeguard deserted? — — Investigation on hidden dangers of safety and hygiene in swimming places

　　Xinhua News Agency reporters Yan Zhihong, Li Yuze, Dong Xiaohong and Yang Na.

　　It’s midsummer, and swimming and fitness are very popular. Not long ago, the National Health and Wellness Commission issued the "List of Unqualified Places for Swimming Pool Water Quality Spot Check in Some Cities (First Batch)", which showed that some swimming pools in many cities were not up to standard.

　　National Fitness Day is coming, is there any hidden danger in the swimming pool you choose? What skills can help us choose a safe and hygienic swimming pool? Xinhua news agency reporters launched an investigation for this.

　　Chaos, Dirty and Danger: There are still many "swimming" problems in various places.

　　A few days ago, a suspected chlorine leak occurred in a swimming pool in Fangshan, Beijing, which caused many people to feel uncomfortable. At the same time, it made people feel palpitation, but it did not stop people from questioning whether the swimming pool around them was safe and hygienic. The reporter conducted field visits and investigations in Nanjing, Chengdu, Xiamen and other places, and found that there are still obvious hidden dangers in many swimming pools.

　　— — "Chaos". During the visit, the reporter found that some swimming venues did not publicize relevant information as required, and some swimming pools did not properly implement the cleaning procedures before entering the pool. In the Yingpaisi Swimming Pool in Gulou District, Nanjing, the reporter found that except for the residual chlorine content and water temperature of the venue, the self-inspection items stipulated in the national health standards such as the pH value and testing time of the swimming pool were not publicized, and other important data directly related to the health of swimmers, such as turbidity, carbon, total bacteria and coliform bacteria, were not announced. The reporter also saw that many visitors crossed the disinfection and sterilization facilities and directly entered the swimming pool. In addition, there are many people who directly wear slippers or even enter the pool without changing their shoes at all.

　　— — "dirty" The total number of bacteria in some swimming places exceeded the standard, causing adverse reactions among minors. "Several dolls in the class vomited and diarrhea after swimming." Many parents told reporters that after their children learned to swim in the miracle gym in Xindu District, Chengdu, they developed symptoms of fever and upper respiratory tract infection. According to the sampling results of local law enforcement departments, the total number of bacteria in the swimming pool water of the museum reached more than five times the upper limit of the standard value.

　　— — "risk" Some swimming pools are not equipped with life-saving personnel, and some lifeguards "desert". In the Yingpaisi Swimming Pool in Nanjing, the reporter found that during the peak hours of passenger flow on the weekend afternoon, there was no lifeguard in the audience for a long time. When some lifeguards are on duty, they often leave their posts or talk and laugh with their backs to the pool for a long time.

　　Excessive profit-seeking, poor management and weak supervision have become the main causes of "swimming"

　　The reporter’s investigation found that excessive profit-seeking, poor management and weak supervision are the main reasons for the safety and health hazards in some swimming venues in many places.

　　Some swimming venues ignore safety and hygiene standards in order to reduce costs. According to the requirements, swimming venues should be cleaned once a month. A coach of Nanjing Yingpaisi Swimming Pool revealed: "Swimming pools in the market are simply difficult to do." He told reporters that it takes two or three days for a small and medium-sized swimming pool to change water, and it takes longer for a large swimming pool. Not to mention the cost of changing water, the time cost is unbearable for commercial swimming pools. Therefore, in order to maximize profits, some swimming pools often try to reduce the frequency of changing water and washing pools.

　　In addition, some swimming pools "hide" in the community, so it is difficult to implement dynamic supervision. Wu Xiang, deputy head of the Environmental Health Supervision Brigade of Chengdu Health and Family Planning Supervision and Law Enforcement Detachment, said that although the facilities and environment of swimming pools (gymnasiums) in some communities are "superior", there are many water quality problems. For example, the residual chlorine value is lower than the national health standard, and the foot soaking pool does not meet the relevant health standards. He said that this swimming pool is usually "hidden in the building" and it is very difficult to implement dynamic supervision.

　　In addition, the rapid increase of passenger flow in summer and the lack of hard constraints on uncivilized swimmers are also the causes of the problem. In the Xiamen Workers’ Sports Swimming Pool, the reporter saw that the current water permeability of the swimming pool was significantly lower than other times. To this end, Chen Hong, deputy director of Xiamen Workers’ Cultural Palace, explained that the current peak season ticket prices are low, and the sudden increase in passenger flow has brought great pressure to management. The museum replaces more than 100 tons of fresh water for the swimming pool every day, but it still can’t eliminate the pressure of maintaining water sanitation. In addition, Chen Hong also said that there is currently a lack of hard constraints on uncivilized behavior in swimming pools. "We can only euphemistically discourage related uncivilized behaviors, and there is nothing else we can do."

　　In addition, the reporter also learned that due to the lack of effective due diligence supervision mechanism for lifeguards, lifeguards "deserted" a lot, which increased the safety risk.

　　Master these tricks and choose a safe and hygienic swimming pool.

　　The staff of relevant authorities in many places reminded that ordinary swimmers who want to choose a safe and hygienic swimming venue for "cool summer" must master certain skills to identify the safety index because of the lack of professional testing equipment.

　　The first is inspection. The majority of swimmers should take the initiative to check whether the health permit is hung in a conspicuous place and check whether it is within the validity period. We should try our best to know the health quantitative grading rating, the history of water quality sampling and the real-time self-inspection of water quality in swimming places in time, and pay special attention to whether the safety equipment and personnel in the venues are in place, so as to choose a suitable swimming place.

　　The second is the view. Observe whether the sanitation around the swimming pool is clean, bright and ventilated, and whether there is water in the drainage ditch. Besides, it depends on the color of the pool water. If the residual chlorine content in the swimming pool is normal and the water quality is excellent, then the pool water is bright light blue. And the water in the pool should be crystal clear to the naked eye.

　　The third is to smell. Is close to the surface of the water to smell the smell of water, if you can smell the faint smell of chlorine, it is qualified, and the medicine is too strong or even choking, then the concentration of available chlorine may exceed the standard.

　　The fourth is feeling. After entering the water, if the water quality of the pool is excellent, it will feel soft. If it feels hard and astringent, or even itchy, the water quality may be poor.

　　At the same time, a number of swimming venue operators have called for the majority of swimmers to consciously swim in a civilized way and jointly safeguard the health and safety of swimming pools. They suggested that the management department should introduce hard restraint measures against uncivilized swimmers who have repeatedly taught, so that civilization can be implemented and the pool can be cleaned.

　　In addition, the reporter learned that swimmers can also check the sanitary condition of the swimming pool around their location through some apps, and can check the water temperature, pH value, average daily water change rate, residual chlorine in the swimming pool and so on.