The Wagner Memorial Pool opened for the season last weekend, and lap swimmers were the first to take advantage.
After a little more than a month of operation, the Wagner Memorial Pool in Twisp has been closed for the summer because of unhealthy conditions caused by wildfire smoke.
The pool, which was closed during the summer of 2020, reopened this year on June19.
“Due to the extremely unhealthy conditions caused by the wildfires near Twisp, the Town has made the difficult decision to close the pool for the remainder of the season,” according to a statement issued by the town on Monday (July 26). “During this time, the health and safety of the public and pool staff are the highest priority. The forecast is for sustained and increasingly unhealthy air quality in Twisp, and as such Town officials recognize that a continued opening of the pool is not feasible at this time. We appreciate the tremendous effort that so many, including the Friends of the Pool, have put into the opening and operation of the pool this year.”
“We can’t reasonably keep it [the pool] open for safety reasons,” Mayor Soo Ing-Moody said Monday. She added that it would be unfair to the pool’s lifeguards to keep them on hold, not knowing whether their jobs would continue or not.
The pool’s operation this year was made possible by contributions from the nonprofit Friends of the Pool, which raised donated funds in the community to supplement operational funds in the town’s budget.
“Friends of the Pool supports the decision for health and safety of the community but is heartbroken to see the pool close,” said the organization’s president, Sarah Schrock. “It was, however, much-loved and well-used during the open weeks!”
