Toxic leak led to council rebuke

A lifeguard received minor chemical burns during a leak of toxic chemicals at the Twizel swimming pool in one of the incidents that led the Mackenzie District Council to outsource the running of the facility.

Documents and emails released to The Timaru Herald under the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act confirm in February 2020 a tap broke off a 1000-litre tank of 13.5 per cent sodium hypochlorite solution, a hazardous bleach-like pool chemical stored in a shed next to the pool.

The bulk of the chemical leaked from a temporary tank – due to be replaced when empty – into two soak pits, although an unspecified amount went into a grate, that led to the pool, which was occupied at the time.

An email by council regulatory manager Jan Spriggs on the day of the spill said a lifeguard working at the pool required first aid treatment after getting some of the chemical on a finger.

The safety data sheet, a document explaining the properties of a hazardous risk, and how to manage those risks, for sodium hypochlorite says it ‘‘causes severe skin burns and eye damage’’ and ‘‘may cause respiratory irritation’’.

Spriggs’ email said: ‘‘The emergency data [chemical spill process and contact details] at the pool are dated 2007. There didn’t seem to be a [safety data sheet] available for them so I have printed one out and given it to [a lifeguard].’’

‘‘I have the phone numbers for the three lifeguards on duty and I will contact them later this evening to check on their health.’’

Spriggs’ email said ‘‘staff were also able to provide me with most of the names of who were in the pool at the time. However, they weren’t in direct exposure’’.

Council staff reported the incident to WorkSafe.

A WorkSafe spokesperson told The Timaru Herald in December ‘‘there were minor burns, but the incident did not meet the threshold for investigation’’.

The amount of chemical that leaked is unknown although an email by the council’s community services and waste officer Angie Taylor the day after the leak said it was ‘‘significantly less than originally thought’’.

She says a swimming pool contractor was on site the week before the leak and ‘‘noted the level of the tank was getting low’’ and estimated the spill was 50-100 litres, although another source told The Timaru Herald they thought it was closer to 600 litres.

The safety data sheet for sodium hypochlorite says it is ‘‘very toxic to aquatic life with long-lasting effects. Do no allow container or product to get into drains, sewers, streams or ponds.’’

Following this incident and others involving untrained staff handling hazardous chemicals and the practice of allowing schools use of pools without council staff or lifeguards present, the council commissioned an independent review by local government consultants Xyst Limited found the Twizel and Fairlie pools ‘‘are an area of significant risk’’.

‘‘Given the council officers have limited experience and knowledge, the risk and consequences of lapses in judgment are so significant that the current approach is not tenable,’’ the report.

The council agreed to outsource the running of the pools to Community Leisure Management (CLM), a private company which manages pools around New Zealand, for a fixed term contract for the 2020-21 season.

‘‘Causes severe skin burns and eye damage’’. Safety data sheet for sodium hypochlorite