In the last nine months there have been nine reported serious incidents at Minnesota swimming pools or water parks, where people became ill, were injured or died.

• June 2007: Abigail Taylor suffered serious injuries at the Minneapolis Golf Club (MGC) pool in St. Louis Park that eventually led to her death. The six-year old was injured when she sat on an open drain in the wading pool; the heavy suction at the drain caused her intestinal tract to be partially removed.
• July 2007: 20 cases of cryptosporidiosis diagnosed in people who swam at a public pool.
• September 2007: 58 cases of cryptosporidiosis diagnosed in people who visited a hotel water park.
• November 2007: Six cases of otitis exertna (“swimmers ear”) diagnosed in guests at a hotel likely due to inadequate chlorine levels in the pool and lack of managerial oversight.
• November 2007: Five cases of dermatitis, a skin infection, diagnosed in guests at a hotel likely due to inadequate chlorine levels in the pool and lack of managerial oversight.
• November-December 2007: 31 cases of cryptosporidiosis diagnosed in people who swam at a public pool.
• December 2007: Three people suffered chemical burns at a hotel pool due to improperly balanced pool chemistry and lack of managerial oversight.
• February 2008: A 17 year-old drowned in a hotel pool after heavy drinking.
• March 2008: Thirty-eight high school students and staff reported illness after a swimming pool pump was turned on while a class was in the pool area.
  

“The clear lesson from all of these incidents is that when proper operating procedures and pool safety rules are not followed, there can be serious consequences,” said John Linc Stine, director of environmental health for Minnesota Department of Heath.

“Proper pool operation and safe enjoyment of swimming pools requires a balance of proper physical conditions of a pool, including safety equipment, correct water chemistry, and observance of pool rules by patrons so that all swimmers are safe,” said Colleen Paulus, manager of the Minnesota Department of Health section that includes public swimming pool inspections and oversight.

If you have been injured in a Minnesota swimming pool, contact a lawyer at Pritzker | Ruohonen. We have a national reputation, and lawyers at our firm have been interviewed by The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Lawyers USA and other publications. Attorneys Fred Pritzker, Rich Ruohonen and Elliot Olsen have been named "Super Lawyers" by Law & Politics magazine. To contact a lawyer at Pritzker | Ruohonen, please call 1-888-377-8900 or submit our free case consultation form.

Posted April 2008.

Labels: Minnesota lawyers, swimming pool injuries