In shallow water
Parks Department in need of lifeguards
BY JAMES C. FALCON
james@nordaknorth.com
With the Garrison Pool set to open in a few weeks time, the Garrison Parks and Recreation Department are finding themselves with a lifeguard shortage. “We would like to have at least seven,” said park board member Heidi Smith. “Ten would be ideal.” As of Tuesday morning, however, there were four lifeguards hired and ready to start when the pool opens on June 3. But, with just the four, it is possible that the pool hours may be cut. “The current hours that we have are cut from our normal hours because the number of lifeguards we have gets smaller,” explained park board member Amber Klingbeil. If it gets to that point, she added, the pool may need to institute a capacity. According to Smith, the pool must follow guidelines set by the First District Health Unit, which dictates the ratio of how many lifeguards are needed for the pool’s capacity. “As of right now, with four lifeguards, we meet our capacity of 100 people max in our pool,” Smith said. “Our maximum limit, with the size of our pool, is over double that. We can’t go over what FDHU states for our shortage.” Smith noted that the problem isn’t limited to just the Garrison pool. “It’s not just us,” she said. “Bismarck Parks and Rec are having the same issue. They are also looking at having to cut pool hours because they cannot get enough lifeguards either.”
