The drowning of a 28-year-old woman in a residential clubhouse pool earlier this month has raised concerns about the safety of private pools and lifeguard standards, writes Hazel Knowles.

It should have been a relaxing evening for the parents who took their children for a swim in the pool at the luxurious Residence Bel-Air in Pokfulam on June 7.

The pool was manned by qualified lifeguards and was an idyllic spot bordered with palms and rock features.

But the enjoyment of that evening was short-lived when at around 6pm, the body of a young woman was spotted floating at one end of the pool.

The woman, 28-year-old resident Jolean Wong, had been seen wandering around and sitting by the pool by her fellow residents some 20 minutes earlier.

In the minutes that followed her being pulled from the water, the residents watched with horror as the lifeguards tried unsuccessfully to revive her at the side of the pool. She was later declared dead on arrival at Queen Mary Hospital.

Although, no factors have been revealed to suggest anyone was to blame for her death, the tragedy has shocked, frightened and angered the Bel-Air residents - some of whom have turned to social media sites to voice concerns about how such a thing could occur in a pool manned by lifeguards.

The luxury housing complex is very family-orientated and its residents include many young children, one of whom, a six-year-old boy, was reported to have witnessed the drowning.

Shock wave

The drowning has also sent a shock wave further afield to residents in other housing complexes who have questioned whether current regulations on private pools and lifeguard standards are adequate enough to ensure the safety of those who use them.

Much of the criticism online has been leveled at the lifeguards working in private pools with many claiming they are often preoccupied with "petty rules" imposed by management including what bathers should wear and appear complacent about their duties.

"I find the lifeguards here in Hong Kong uninspiring to say the least. We have also had a tech/napping (using smart phones and sleeping) issues at our building in the Mid-Levels and my husband has woken a guard (at another pool) before now," said one Facebook user in a thread which attracted more than 100 comments.

In the same thread, a resident of another housing complex talks of how she has regularly woken up lifeguards at their pool and told them off for using their phones.

"The other weekend, I had to tell a lifeguard at our pool it was inappropriate to be texting/surfing on his phone while on duty and the pool was full of kids at the time," said another.

Safety and health requirements of private pools, including lifeguard qualifications, come under the control of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD), which is responsible for issuing licenses for private pools serving more than 20 residences.

This legislation was most recently updated in 2006 to bring the issue of lifeguard and first aid qualifications in line with those working at public pools operated by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD).

The move made it a requirement for licensed private pools to possess a lifeguard award from the Hong Kong Life Saving Society. Previously, they had only needed a Bronze Medallion in lifesaving.

At the time, the change was welcomed by the Hong Kong Life Saving Society (HKLSS). However, seven years on, the society and a lifeguard union believe there is still room for improvement to ensure swimmers stay safe at private pools.

Speaking to China Daily, a HKLSS spokeswoman explained the current legislation only set out minimum requirements and it was up to the management of pools to enforce a code of conduct among its lifeguards.

She said more could be done to promote water safety to pool license-holders and to those people using pools.

"The management of swimming pools should do preventive measures, such as risk assessment for evaluation or assessment of the potential dangers in the swimming pool, in particular those swimming pools with fancy design, which inhere some blind spots that might inhibit effective lifeguard surveillance," she said.

"Meanwhile, other preventive measures such as proper placement of signage and promotion of water safety code are also important."

One issue that compromises safety, according to the Hong Kong and Kowloon Lifeguards Union, was the stipulation that private pools only needed a minimum of two qualified lifeguards. This means that any pool can operate with only two lifeguards and leaves the decision on manpower, beyond those two, to the pool management.

Alex Kwok, spokesman for union which represents lifeguards working at LCSD public pools and beaches, said this failure to set out proper manpower requirements was one of the main problems.

"The minimum requirement is two lifeguards but some private swimming pools are very big and they need more lifeguards. It could be that a pool needs 10," he said.

"Before a public pool is opened, it is inspected by a professional team who decide how many lifeguards, how many watching posts and how many first aid rooms are needed. They look at the whole thing.

"Private pools don't have the same system. I have complained about this to the Labour Party before now. The law should be changed so that the LCSD handle the licenses as it has more experience."

Kwok said a shortage of lifeguards in Hong Kong and low wages could also compromise safety leaving lifeguards over worked and over tired.

"We are short of around 500 lifeguards and if manpower is short they (lifeguards at private pools) may be required to work long hours, which means they are tired and not concentrating on watching the pool as they should.

"The pay is also too low, only about HK$45 to HK$50 dollars per hour. If the salary was higher, then perhaps, they wouldn't need to work such long hours."

Regular inspections

Kwok said he had tried recently to form a union for the lifeguards at the private pools but had received little interest.

In a statement, the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD) said, in addition to the required minimum two qualified lifeguards, licensees may be required to provide additional qualified lifeguards depending on the design and size of the pool.

The spokesperson said officers also conducted regular inspections of pools and that anyone failing to comply with regulations would be liable to a maximum fine of HK$5,000, a daily fine of HK$50, plus possible suspension or cancellation of their license.

"To ensure that the licensees comply with statutory requirements and licensing conditions, inspecting officers will check the hygiene conditions and equipment of the swimming pools, as well as the number and qualifications of life saving attendants etc." she said.

What actually happened on the evening of June 7 when Jolean Wong lost her life is now the subject of an investigation and possible inquest, police said.

The management company of Bel-Air declined to comment on the incident because of the police investigation, but gave assurances that the pool was manned in accordance with the FEHD license and that all lifeguards at the pool were fully qualified according to swimming pools regulations.

"It has always been the policy and practice of the management company of Bel-Air to ensure health and safety, including provision of poolside supervision by lifeguards who meet the qualifications requirement under the applicable legislation and regulations as well as the requirements under the pool licenses," a spokesperson said.

Whatever the outcome of the investigation, the outpouring online indicates that many people are worried safety is being compromised at private pools.

A friend of Ms Wong, who wished not to be named, told the China Daily she hoped lessons could be learnt from the tragic death of her friend.

"From a personal point of view from this tragedy, an overhaul definitely needs to happen. Too often I see lifeguards sleeping behind sunglasses," she said.

(HK Edition 07/05/2013 page2)