Updated 16.48 | Published 16.44
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Aftonbladet has been in contact with several parents who visited Skara sommarland and worried about safety. Photo: Reader picture
A 10-year-old boy died after he was found in a pool at Skara sommarland.
Now concerned parents who visited the theme park are raising their voices and think the park has too few lifeguards and too many visitors at the same time.
– You didn’t see anyone at the edge of the pools, says visitor Frida, 34.
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Summer, sun and swimming at Skara sommerland. Every year Swedes flock there to swim and play.
But several parents that Aftonbladet has spoken to say that it is difficult to find lifeguards in the water park, the area with pools. At the same time as it is packed with visitors.
– When we got to the water park, I was shocked at how many people were knotted on the same surface, says the mother Frida, who was there on Tuesday, just a few days before the drowning accident where a 10-year-old boy died.
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fullscreenAlexandra Mokos visited the summer country with daughter Viktoria, among others. Photo: Reader picture
The lack of staff was evident, especially in the pool area. The employees the family saw working in the kiosks:
– You didn’t see anyone at the edge of the pools, says Frida.
– My husband claims to have seen maybe seven in total, but thinks it’s a little considering how many visitors there were. We actually said that the summer country should have a cap on the number of visitors, she continues.
“Packed like herrings”
Another visitor, Alexandra Mokos, 35, also testifies to the large number of visitors. She was there on July 23rd. Then there were so many visitors that the staff had to close down kiosks because they could not cope with the pressure.
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full screen “I felt that if we were to let the children go, we would never see them again,” says Alexandra Mokos, who visited Skara sommarland’s water park this summer. Photo: Reader picture
– I felt that if we were to let the children go, we would never see them again, she says.
Saw few lifeguards
She continues and says that lifeguards were in short supply – she saw maybe two or three – during the visit.
– It is totally unacceptable. Why do they have to make so much money when they can’t hold a responsibility?
A visitor who was there on the day of the drowning accident recognizes himself.
– We were packed like herrings, he says.
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full screen Skara sommarland’s pool area is closed on Sunday. Photo: Aftonbladet
No maximum limit
Skara sommerland has no maximum limit for the number of visitors. The park makes a daily assessment for the amount of lifeguards based on the weather and the number of visitors.
– It controls where the guests are on the day in question, says Christoffer Östling, acting CEO of Skara Sommarland.
– We have around 20 pool attendants on site every day.
Do you have enough staff to handle the pressure?
– Yes, that is our assessment. We would never open the park if it wasn’t safe for our guests. Safety is the most important thing for us.
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full screenChristoffer Östling, acting CEO of Skara Sommarland. Photo: Skara Sommarland
He says that the lifeguards rotate their job positions every 90 minutes to stay awake and alert.
On the day the accident happened, there were 19 lifeguards on site, according to him.
During Sunday, the water park is temporarily closed. Now there are meetings with the employees.
– This is an extremely tragic event. Our thoughts go first and foremost to the child’s family and relatives, says Christoffer Östling.
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full screenSkara sommerland has no maximum limit for the number of visitors. Photo: Adam Ihse/TT
The employees have the opportunity for professional help.
– Then it is the case that you bathe under your own responsibility. Regardless of whether you are here with your family or friends, we urge you to keep an eye on each other, but this is an extremely tragic event.
No one is a criminal suspect after the drowning accident.