The swimming pool at Lac de la Ramée will reopen on Saturday 9 July. While waiting for the first swimmers, the Toulouse Métropole and the Tournefeuille town hall emphasize safety. To prevent drowning, lifeguards and agents will be deployed throughout the summer.
A few days before the opening on Saturday 9 July, Ramée bathing area will have a makeover. Seasonal workers fine-tune the final details before welcoming the public. At the top of a ladder, a few employees are in the process of installing speakers. Others are completing the final preparations for the space that will serve as sanitary facilities. The fine sand is ready for the towels and the lawn is mowed. The preparations are almost complete.
Before the start signal, the Toulouse Métropole should only emphasize safety. “There is a space reserved for swimming. Outside this place, everyone takes a risk,” warns Dominique Fouchier, mayor of Tournefeuille.
Every year, the Lac de la Ramée is the scene of many drownings. To avoid these tragedies, which regularly occur outside the bathing area, play the Toulouse Métropole prevention card. Signs have been installed along the lake and patrols will circle the body of water to deter unsupervised swimming.
Safety first ?
“Every year, most of those drowned bathed on the spot outside the surveillance areas. For us, it is difficult to monitor 40 hectares, «argues Philippe Plantade, vice president of the metropolis responsible for leisure bases.
For this summer, the Toulouse Métropole and the town hall of the Tournefeuille have set up a system. The bathing area will be monitored by 7 lifeguards, who will rotate to welcome the public over a wide period of time. 12 security guards will also deter any rudeness. At night, a dog handler will also do rounds. “Of course we also appeal to responsibility. The summer will be hot, but we want to respect the rules. It is very dangerous to bathe outside the room, ”insists Philippe Plantade.
Toulouse Métropole spent almost 260,000 euros on setting up this system. The monitored area can accommodate more than 1,500 people. During the two months, nearly 20,000 bathers come to the water in this regulated area.
A swim with strict rules
Between the threats of drowning, but especially the atrocities on the beach, it was also necessary to introduce a regulation. And at this point, the laws are similar to municipal swimming pools in the big city. Swimming is prohibited for unaccompanied children under the age of ten. Only swimwear is allowed. Formal ban on soaking while fully clothed.
“It is important to allow swimming in good conditions. We will do our best to enforce the rules. There will be random checks initiated by the police, but it will be difficult to check every square meter of the base, ”warns the mayor of Tournefeuille. The bathing area in the green base of La Ramée remains open until 28 August.