Cheoc Van pool closed 54% of season, reasons vary

The Cheoc Van Swimming Pool, a facility under the management and supervision of the Sports Bureau (ID), has been closed for over 54% of the 2022 bathing season, which started on May 1, the ID has confirmed in response to an inquiry from the Times.

“Since May 1, 2022, the Cheoc Van Swimming Pool has been closed for a total of 64 days,” the ID said, explaining in further detail the reasons that led to the closure of the sports and leisure facility.

The problems started on June 11 when the pool was closed for six days due to a “backflow of sewage that occurred due to blocked drainage,” the ID said, adding that after that there was a closure ordered due to the Covid-19 outbreak that lasted from June 19 until August 1.

A few days later, on August 7, the ID again ordered the closure of the facility until August 18 as a result of the same backflow of sewage due to blocked drainage.

After being open for less than a week, the pool had to close again on August 25 and 26. This time, the ID said that the closing of the facility was related to “emergency repair work and cleaning, required after the hit of typhoon [Ma-on].”

In the same written response to the Times, the ID noted that, in order to improve the use of sports facilities, the ID does regular checks, cleaning, and maintenance during the closure period of outdoor swimming pools every year.

The problems particularly noted with the Cheoc Van Swimming Pool drainage may have been related to the public drainage network, a situation that led the Bureau to inform the Municipal Affairs Bureau, who promptly performed works to solve the problem permanently.