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Is it safe to swim in a pool during coronavirus outbreak?

Before you jump in the water, you should know there are certain risks right now.

There’s nothing better than a dip in the pool on a hot summer day.

Before you jump in the water, you should know there are certain risks right now.

Louisiana Assistant State Health Officer Dr. Joseph Kanter said the water itself won’t transmit the Coronavirus. But he warns other people in the pool could be a source of infection.

“Two kids playing in a pool in close proximity can transmit the virus to one another just as well as they can if they were playing outside the pool,” Kanter said.

According to Kanter, certain pool activity is relatively safe.

“If someone goes in the pool and swims laps and gets out, somebody else goes in right afterwards, that’s not much of a transmission risk. It’s essentially a chlorine bath,” Kanter said.

This Memorial Day weekend, community pools are not allowed to open in Louisiana. That includes pools at hotels, apartment complexes and country clubs.

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Louisiana Fire Marshal Butch Browning says they are ordered to remain closed until phase two of the state’s reopening plan.

“We’re asking people to please find other ways to entertain, right now, until we’re past this (heath crisis), but bringing large amounts of people together, people over 10 together and being in these community pool, is a risk,” Browning said.

Some pools at fitness centers can open for lap swim only.

Jefferson Parish President Cynthia Lee Sheng has not committed to reopening the public pool at Johnny Jacob park in Harvey anytime soon.

“We’re going to do our best research before we even open and we’re going to have very strict guidelines when we do open our pool and we’re able get back to that,” Lee Sheng said.

When it comes to backyard pools, it’s best to limit swimmers to small groups of family members and close friends.

“We just want to encourage everyone to be safe,” Lee Sheng said.

“Make it for your family,” Browning said. “Don’t bring a lot of people outside your household or anyone outside your household actually because again, it’s about stopping the spread (of the Coronavirus).

While in the water, swimmers should also maintain social distance from anyone outside their stay at home group.

The Centers for Disease Control has issued some best practices for reopening community pools.

They include encouraging guests to wear a cloth mask when not in the pool, laying out seating areas so patrons can remain 6 feet away from anyone outside their household and requiring pool staffs to regularly disinfect frequently touched surfaces.

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