Poliomyelitis Affects

Grey River Argus, 18 September 1948, Page 3

Poliomyelitis Affects

Swimming Season in Greymouth

When indications .were most, promising poiioyelitis restrictions were introduced, 'and resulted in reduced attendances at the baths, said Mr M. R. Bunt, president, in his report to the annual meeting of the N.Z. Amateur Swimming Association, West Coast branch on Wednesday. Early in December, he added, the Health Department requested that children should not be admitted to the baths and your committee had ao option but to comply with its request. From then on attendances slumped badly, and the total for the year of only 8608. was the lowest on record. The highest attendance recorded was 1591 for the week ended November 23, an exceptionally high figure for so early in the season and a good indication of what could have been expected had it not been for the poliomyelitis cases. Rain fell on 32 days, compared with 30 last season. Season ticket sales were made early in the season and reached 25 for adults and 65 for children by the end of November when sales halted abruptly. Mr Bunt said that as a further -result of the restrictions there was no swimming instruction at the various schools, and hundreds of children missed the opportunity of learning to swim. • This was to be deplored. No carnivals were held during the year and there was, therefore, no revenue from this source. With the consent of the Borough Council, £7O was transferred to the Centre’s ordinary account from the Baths Account, to be applied in deduction of the debt on the Victor sound projector. As a consequence of .this transfer, and of the low revenue for the year it has not been possible to make the usual transfer to the Bath Rebuilding Fund though the Greymouth Borough Council has made its usual contribution of £lOO to this fund, which now stands at £1441 8s 6d.. Subsidies contributed by the council for the season amounted to £126. PROSPECTS NOT PROMISING Mr T. Holmes, caretaker for the 1946-47 season was not available for the season and the. committee was fortunate in securing the services of Mr H. McClymont and Mrs W. S. McClymorft who most capably filled the position between them. At the date of this report further cases of poliomyelitis are being reported in various parts of New Zealand and’ for this reason prospects for the coming season are not promising, but it is hoped that in view of the fact that there have been no cases on the West Coast, no restrictions will be necessary, and that the baths will this year receive the maximum possible >se for the teaching of swimming, and the health recreation of the community, Mr Bunt said. SECRETARY’S REPORT

The secretary (Mr W. S. McClymont) reported that the panel of coaches and school teachers of the district who had prepared a scheme for a learn-to-swim season, promised well. A roster of two coaches per day was arranged for the five school days each week, and these were on duty from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. for the purpose of teaching children to swim. The, popularity of this arrangement may be gauged from the tact that, in the first week after its inception, 999 pennies were paid by children for admission to the baths —this was in addition to the season ticket holders. During the second week the attendances dropped to 462. Then the restrictions, including the ban on the attendance at public baths of children under 16, were imposed and the bottom’ dropped out of the season. Whether because of fea’r of possible infection or just because without the children the bath was unnaturally quiet, the attendance of adults dropped to a small fraction of the usual. The usual swimming carnivals could not be run. For the same reason it was decided not tc» hold the centre championships, so that the only competition swimming in the whole season was provided by the local Technical High School’s annual sports, and the two races for the primary children within a 50-mile radius of Greymouth for the boys and girls Chatauqua Medals. The only other organised swimming activity was life-saving, one class of boys and two classes of girls being presented by Miss Stuart and Mr Ormandy. DEPARTMENT'S BAN It would appear fitting to mention again the ban imposed by the Department of Health on swimming in the baths. The Department also in the' same breath, as it were, during the past season, warned folk against swimming in rivers and from beaches . near sewer outfalls, undoubtedly thereby creating in the minds of sonie ot the’ public the idea that a public swimming baths is a danger to public health. That there was not unanimity on this matter even among medical men was shown by the statement is sued from their annual conference held at Dunedin, and also by the statement which appeared in “The Swimming Times,” which letter was reprinted in the local papers. From the it appeals iliac people are ciu-. banned from swimming in properly chlorinated baths in England and Fiance during a poliomyelitis epidemic, it being considered by the medical men there that the germ is not water-born but air-borne. It is itiri.ner point that cases of the trouble have continued to make their appearance jn the North Island right tn co ine winter, which seems to give the lie to any suggestion that swimming is a contributory factor to it. When the annual report ,of the National Committee of Swimming and Life-saving appears it will disclose that the 1947-48 summer was one of the worst, if not the worst, for drownings in the history of New Zealand, and I firmly believe that this sad state of affairs was at least partly due to folk who .endeavouring to avoid i crowds, as recommended by the Health Department, went swimming in the sea, in lakes and in rivers, and were as effectively killed by so doing as if they had fatally contracted poliomyelitis. Does not this matter require to be taken up with the heal th authorities in New Zealand ?