will this be this years excuse to open Victoria Pool late?

The region may have just seen its first appreciable winter storm, but that’s not going to stop me from writing about a decidedly summer distraction: pools.

A new federal law tailored to increase the safety of public pools and spas, called the Virginia Graeme Baker Pool and Spa Safety Act, goes into effect Dec. 19.

It calls for upgrades to suction and drainage equipment that officials say cayse one or two deaths every year in the United States. The new law –named after the the granddaughter of James Baker, a former U.S. Secretary of State, who died in 2002 when she was caught in the drain at a private spa — will require that all public and community pools install drain covers that can prevent the deaths.

Thousands of pools across the county could be forced to close, at least temporarily, for failing to comply.

But Eileen Larrabee, a spokeswoman for the New York State Office of Parks & Recreation, said any issues at the Peerless Pool or the Victoria Pool in Saratoga Spa State Park should be addressed before their scheduled opening this summer.

“We’re aware of the law, we’re surveying the pools and taking steps to comply,” she said. “There are some modifications that may need to be made but they should not interrupt operations.”

– Drew Kerr

This entry was posted on Friday, December 12th, 2008 at 4:03 pm and is filed under Saratoga Snippets, Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.