Pool safety law goes into effect

[Dredly]

Intresting... I wonder how many millions of dollars have been spent on drain covers for pools...


and on average 1 child dies / year because of this...

http://www.poconorecord.com/apps/pbc...200340/-1/NEWS

Under a sweeping federal law that goes into effect today, indoor pools in the Poconos and around the country could be forced to close unless new anti-drowning drain covers are installed.

The rules affect pools used by the public, like municipal pools, hotels and health clubs.

The law requires pools and spas to install drain covers and safety equipment to prevent drain suction from trapping children underwater.

"For a lot of pools some of those upgrades can be extremely difficult," said Rob Bishop, owner of Elevations Health Club in Scotrun. "For many older pools without standard size drains there currently is no solution. I think the older pools are going to have a much harder time with this."

Bishop said he is lucky. The indoor pool at Elevations was built in 2007 with standard drains that easily fit existing drain covers to match the law.

The Pocono Family YMCA in Stroudsburg was not so lucky. No drain cover has been invented yet for the drain at the 1950s-era pool.

"Drain manufacturers have not come up with a solution for 90 degree drains," said Matt Rumph, Pocono Family YMCA CEO. "Once they come up with a replacement we'll do it. We've been dealing with this actively for about six months. We've contacted our local pool safety inspector and we're keeping up with any solutions that become available."

Congress gave pool operators one year to comply with the law after it was signed by President Bush on Dec. 19, 2007. The national Consumer Product Safety Commission will be charged with enforcing the law and Nancy Nord, acting chairman of the commission, said the agency will focus on public baby pools and wading pools where the youngest swimmers face greater risk — not deeper pools like the Stroudsburg YMCA.

Nord said Congress did not give her agency the funding to enforce the law and the federal government will rely on states to shoulder the enforcement burden.

"What the attorney general is authorized to do is bring a civil suit against any violating pools under the jurisdiction of the state Consumer Protection Bureau," said Eric Shirk, spokesman for Pennsylvania Attorney General Tom Corbett.

Shirk said the attorney general's office will likely rely on consumer complaints to spark investigations of unsafe pools.

New drain models feature a hump-shaped drain cover rather than a flat style that can more easily attain suction on a child's body. On average, according to the National Consumer Product Safety Commission, one person dies every year in the country from drain suction.

The issue received increased attention after the 7-year-old granddaughter of former Secretary of State James A. Baker died after being sucked onto a spa drain in 2002. The new law is named the Virginia Graeme Baker Pool and Spa Safety Act in her memory.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

[bogey1]

when i was a kid, my friends and i used to jump off of the high dive and swim to the bottom of the pool, take off the steel grate of the drain and climb in and put the grate back on so when the next kid jumped in he didnt see us. the life guards didnt like it so much and the other kids thought we disappeared. at the time it was funny, but now thinking back on it we could of been sucked into the drain pipe. oh the memories...

[Frenchy]

when i was a kid, my friends and i used to jump off of the high dive and swim to the bottom of the pool, take off the steel grate of the drain and climb in and put the grate back on so when the next kid jumped in he didnt see us. the life guards didnt like it so much and the other kids thought we disappeared. at the time it was funny, but now thinking back on it we could of been sucked into the drain pipe. oh the memories...

I have been in a couple of pools in my time, and just can’t remember a drain larger then 6 to 8 inches; you just have been a very small kid.

The problem with these drains is kids tend to want to sit on them or put their bellies on them, with all the water pressure from the pool, the suction holds them there.

I remember our fun was to jump in feet first and go sit on the drain; we dove for quarters and stuff like that.

If you had a tendency to have the soft poops, an instant enema happened.

At 12 feet deep, it was quite the thing to do back then, I suppose no worst then what today’s kids do with paint and compressed air cans.

Some pools I have seen In water parks in Quebec have a thing that looks like a cement umbrella over their grates, the idea is to make the surface of the suction so large that a child can not be held down by the suction. Dustrubuting the surface of the 8 unch hole over a 6 foot round area about an inch thick makes the pool safer from kids trying to get sucked up.

[jerkin]

If it wouldn't have happened to the granddaughter of a politician there would be no law. They don't give two shits about your kids but when something happens to one of theirs then it's time for a new law.

[mauser]

If it wouldn't have happened to the granddaughter of a politician there would be no law. They don't give two shits about your kids but when something happens to one of theirs then it's time for a new law.

'Nuff said right there. jerkin stole my words.

[BSH]

What's the constitutional basis for this law?

[MichaelJ]

What's the constitutional basis for this law?

well as long as they can replace "We the people" with "OMG for the children" they can get people to vote for anything.

[Exbiker]

What's the constitutional basis for this law?

Consumer protection laws are not always a bad thing. I never knew this was an issue until I saw the stats about a year ago. Usually these are really little kids that are affected. One a year dies and lot`s are injured each year including some that have their bowels sucked out their anus and the dead bowel is then removed in E ward and they wear a colostomy bag for life.

I find your question quite ignorant.

[CarolinaGuy]

When I was living in Raleigh, there was a famous case of a 6 year old getting the first third of her intestines sucked out by a pool drain. This was a case that John Edwards would be made famous by.

The drain company had been warned of the problem, yet they neglected to inform/recall these drains that could be fixed by of a part that cost less than a quarter. Now I know some people like to attack "trial lawyers", but the revelations of greed by the company compared to the life this little girl will have was downright tragic.

Now this particular case is a little more complicated, since it goes back to the 50's...but seeing the shit my plant engineer whips up everyday, please don't tell me there is no simple fix to this problem.

I sure wouldn't want my kids swimming in such a pool...maybe because that Raleigh case has haunted me for 15 yeas.

[imperialism2024]

Safety theater.

If this new law is widely publicized by the media, I'll put money on the fact that childrens' drowning deaths will increase, as parents begin leaving their children alone more often under a false sense of security.