22/03/2025
Kiaora Swim Club Members,
As per usual, time is flying by, and the end of the term is coming up soon and with it is the first event of the year which is the Personal Best night.
However, before we send out notices in regard to our Personal Best Night, we need to address another issue which has been recently in the news and on social media.
National Public Health Service Wellington has noticed an increase in reports of gastro illness and in particular the numbers of cryptosporidiosis (crypto) cases in Hutt Valley over recent weeks. The illness is affecting pre-school children, school-aged children, their parents, and whanau. Some important things to note is that this particular illness has been linked to pool facilities in the Hutt Valley/Wellington region. The pools that have been named so far are Te Ngaengae and Huia.
As of 21 March, there were 35 cases of gastric illness in the Greater Wellington region, with 18 of those cases being people who had used a pool or had contact with unwell people in their household who had used a pool. There may be possibly more cases in the community because not everyone reports being unwell with crypto.
We have contacted Te Ngaengae Pool, and they have earlier dosed the pool with extra chlorine and run the UV light treatment. As of the 21st of March 2025, they are completely draining both the kids pool, cleaning it, and will refill it with new water. At this stage Swimming lessons are still on until we her otherwise and we will notify you if the kids pools remain closed as this will affect our 6pm and 6.30pm classes. We totally understand if you prefer not to bring the kids to swimming as with school holidays coming up soon and the nature of this illness can really take its toll on people.
Some simple steps below can be taken to keep yourself and your family safe.
Stop the spread of crypto: protect yourself, your whānau, and your community
• Always practice good hand washing and drying especially after using the toilet, changing nappies, and before preparing or eating food.
• Alcohol-based hand sanitiser does not kill the cryptosporidium bug or stop the spread of the microscopic crypto cysts. But, washing hands with soap and water is effective.
• If unwell with diarrhoea, stay home from school or early childhood centres until 48 hours after the diarrhoea stops.
• Do not use swimming pools or splash pads for two weeks after diarrhoea has stopped – crypto can still spread for two weeks after the illness has gone away.
• The biggest health risk from crypto is dehydration. If someone in your whānau develops crypto symptoms make sure they keep their fluids up, and seek help early if you are concerned, particularly for babies and young children. Healthline is a free service available
• When tamariki are well remember to do the following if taking them to a swimming pool, take them to the toilet before they swim and wash their hands after going to the toilet. Where possible, get tamariki to shower before they put on their togs. Use soap and warm water, especially in the area around the bottom. If they use nappies, they should wear approved swimming nappies.
Below is the latest news article from RNZ and also a fact sheet about Cryptosporidiosis.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/545608/hutt-city-council-to-drain-pools-following-cryptosporidiosis-outbreak
https://www.rph.org.nz/public-health-topics/illness-and-disease/cryptosporidium/cryptosporidiosis-factsheet.pdf
Nga mihi,
Your Naenae Swimming Club Committee.
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