Despite the hot weather this weekend, the Vaudois are not flocking to the pools this summer. However, respecting sanitary distances does not seem to be in danger.
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Prilly swimming pool (archive image)
Rainer Sohlbank
Despite temperatures at–above 30 degrees last weekend, the favorite pools of Vaudois were not overwhelmed. «I expected more people, but the influx was manageable», comments the manager of the Prilly swimming pool, Laurent Faraone. On this Sunday almosti scorching, there have never been more than 2,000 people at the same time in the enclosure of the swimming pool, or half less than the 4,000 people authorized as a preventive measure against Covid-19.
Since June 25, the Association of French-speaking and Ticino swimming pools (APRT) has recommended that its members control their instantaneous attendance so as to guarantee at least 4 m2 space for everyone. «It would take massive influxes for a pool to not be able to stick to it, and we haven’t faced big spikes in attendance this summer.», observes Marco Fernandez, vice-president of the APRT.
“We did not face major peaks in attendance this summer”
AT the Renens swimming pool, while 3,500 people can be admitted at the same time, the 2,000-person mark was just exceeded on Sunday. «Some customers still have concerns. I saw some take their entry ticket and leave after a few minutes», observes John Flores, pool manager.
The same goes for the Bellerive swimming pool, whereÙ the maximum limit of 12,000 people at the same time is far from having been reached. «For the month of August, it was a good weekend, but throughout the summer we never had to refuse people», notes Stephan Elsener, deputy manager of swimming pools and ice rinks in the City of Lausanne.
There are however exceptions, for example at Aquaparc, at Bouveret. Much smaller than Bellerive, the Valais swimming pool is one of those have set up a compulsory reservation system, as in Morges for example. «We had to turn away from people, especially early Saturday afternoon», observes its director, Sonia Vandenabeele, who specifies that due to restrictions related to coronavirus, site capacity is reduced by 30-40%.
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