Hill Pool is closed for the summer after an act of vandalism overnight between Aug. 4 and 5. (Photo Courtesy of Tiffany Goodwein)

By Chris Brown

Vandalism

Hill Pool closed for summer after contaminant dumped in water

Aug 5, 2020 | 5:00 PM

MEDICINE HAT, AB – Just over a week after opening, Hill Pool is closed for the year after a contaminant was dumped in the water in what the city and police say was a deliberate act of vandalism.

“This morning one of our senior operators went to open the pool and discovered that in addition to items being broken like some windows and damage that was done to the property we did discover a contaminant in the pool that was put in there through the act of vandalism,” said James Will, general manager, Parks and Recreation.

After discussions with Alberta Health Services, the decision was made the pool must first be cleaned of the contaminant, the drained, the lines must be cleaned and the pool surface must be thoroughly scrubbed. After that, the pool must be refilled, brought up to temperature and samples sent to AHS.

Each spring it takes about three weeks to get a pool ready to open and with the added steps necessary in this instance, Will said it would be late August before the pool could be ready. Pools normally don’t stay open into September, said Will, so the city would go through this entire process to have the city open for just a matter of days.

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Will said he was encouraged by the number of community members who quickly offered to help when the city posted news of the closure on Facebook.

“Unfortunately it’s not a situation where it requires quite literally more hands on deck. It’s great to see that from the community. It really speaks to the community and how they’re behind wanting to support the amenities and wanting to be able to offer things to the public.”

He added it’s disappointing and unfortunate for Hatters to lose Hill Pool for the summer.

“I recognize that the community is upset and seeing something taken out of service that I think everyone was quite excited about,” he said. “We know that Hill Pool is our most popular facility. We were excited to get it back online and see people coming out to use it.”

Staff will now work to clean and prepare it for winterization. Scheduled swimming lessons at Hill Pool are cancelled. Strathcona Pool remains open for public swimming and pre-registration is required.

Medicine Hat Police Service is investigating and says the vandalism “will result in thousands of dollars of clean up, inconvenience and lost enjoyment for summer swimmers.”

Police ask anyone who may have any information pertaining to this crime can call local police, or contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477). Medicine Hat residents can also submit tips anonymously through the Medicine Hat Police Service mobile app, which is free to download and available for both Apple and Android devices.