‘I don’t feel safe’ ... no trust in Discovery Bay lifeguards despite new pool safety measures
Discovery Bay operator says it has reminded pool operator of the importance of its lifeguards following safety procedures following two ‘near drownings’
Parents and Club Siena members have dismissed new measures to boost poolside safety following two incidents at the Discovery Bay facility, insisting lifeguards could not be relied upon.
Anger and criticism continued after two children had to be rescued by people other than lifeguards after getting into difficulties in the pool on two occasions last week.
In its first comments, Hong Kong Resort, which operates the luxury leisure complex, said it was “deeply concerned” about the incident and had drafted further precaution measures to “avoid similar incidents in the future”.
“Immediate action taken by the club included further fine tuning of the posting of lifeguard stands and increasing the number of routine patrols over the pools,” a spokeswoman for Hong Kong Resort said.
Hong Kong Resort said it had met with its unnamed contractor, which operates the lifeguard services, to “reinforce” the importance of safety and operational procedures.
The company added that the majority of the “professionally qualified” lifeguards possessed at least three years’ experience, but did not comment on whether any member of staff was disciplined over the most serious incident last Friday when a “lifeless” boy was pulled from the swimming pool and rushed to hospital.