Plenty of the recreation facilities that cities and towns operate attract visitors all year, but for playgrounds and water attractions, the warm-weather months are undeniably the busy season. All of these facilities come with safety and liability concerns, and early preparation and forethought can help prevent injuries and potential lawsuits.
Playgrounds
When playgrounds lack proper design and maintenance, they can become a dangerous liability. To prevent this, officials need to make certain they are following appropriate industry standards, such as those found in the Consumer Products Safety Commission’s Public Playground Safety Handbook, available online, as well as the American Society for Testing and Materials’ Standard Consumer Specification for Playground Equipment for Public Use, available online.
Here are some important takeaways from the standards:
Assess equipment regularly – Playground facilities need an inspection for safety issues at least once a month, and more often during high-use periods like the summer. Whenever possible, parks departments should use a safety inspector certified by the National Recreation and Park Association.
Use a preventive maintenance program – Document all inspection findings and maintenance performed. Correct any identified hazards.
Use safety signage - Make sure that playground equipment has proper signage providing direction and warnings are clearly visible and easily understood, even by those for whom English is not a first language.
Consider play area layout – Play areas need to be fenced or separated for different age groups as well as for conflicting activities. Also, parents need benches and other seating with immediate visibility of play areas to supervise children’s play.
Follow the Consumer Product Safety Commission Public Playground Safety Checklist – This list gives standards for everything from the shock-absorbing protective surfacing around play equipment to the spacing of play equipment. It also covers dangers from hardware, sharp edges and equipment damage; spaces that could trap children; guardrails and tripping hazards.
Splash pads, swimming pools, water parks
Splash pads have emerged as a widespread alternative to pools, given their lower cost and scalability, although many cities maintain traditional pools. Some are operating full-scale water parks, such as the Town of Duncan with its Shipwreck Cove Water Park, and the City of Hartsville, which has the Neptune Island Waterpark.
All forms of water attractions have risk management concerns. Some are common to all types, like the need for prominently displayed rules, regular inspection and supervision for stairs and platforms — elements that can raise the potential for trips, slips and falls — and the concerns of improperly grounded electrical equipment, water quality and chlorine handling requirements. Operators should also pay attention to the maintenance of disinfecting mechanisms for recirculating water, since this requirement helps guard against the spread of recreational water illnesses.
All forms of water attractions need properly trained, certified and equipped staff. Wading pools or beach-entry pools serve small children and others who may need special attention from lifeguards.
Some signage issues are specific to swimming pools, like faded or otherwise illegible depth markings. If the parks department allows diving in the pool, it should mark the appropriate areas where diving is permitted, with “no diving” signs used in any other area. Rules for pool use need to be prominently displayed.
A lack of proper fencing can also be an issue because of the legal doctrine of “attractive nuisances.” This holds that property owners should take steps to discourage children from trespassing to access potentially dangerous facilities that can be reasonably anticipated to attract them, such as a pool. Beyond fencing, this involves locked gates and signage indicating that entry is prohibited outside of operating hours.
Municipalities with water attractions can find guidance from the SC Department of Health and Environmental Control’s Regulation 61-51, available at www.schdhec.gov, which governs pools and other built, public water attractions. It addresses construction and design requirements, equipment, operation and maintenance. It also includes a 16-part list of required items for a pool rules sign and sets out the regulations for signs indicating that no diving is allowed or that no lifeguard is on duty.
Water bodies
For city parks established along lakes and rivers, signage is important for liability, such as “swim at your own risk” warnings for areas without lifeguards. In some cases, the municipality may need to restrict or prohibit activities like swimming and fishing.
Officials should also consider having adequate railings and keeping lifesaving equipment nearby for visitors to use.
The SC Municipal Insurance and Risk Financing Fund provides its members with a parks and recreation toolkit. In addition to playground safety issues, it addresses concerns of parks and recreation personnel, the liability issues involved in fees and supervision, sports programs and other facility guidelines. Learn more about SCMIRF online.