Wrong chemical dumped into Olympic pools made them green, smelly—and unsafe

[Sgent]

Source: Ars Technica

After a week of trying to part with green tides in two outdoor swimming pools, Olympic officials over the weekend wrung out a fresh mea culpa and yet another explanation—neither of which were comforting.

According to officials, a local pool-maintenance worker mistakenly added 160 liters of hydrogen peroxide to the waters on August 5, which partially neutralized the chlorine used for disinfection. With chlorine disarmed, the officials said that “organic compounds”—i.e. algae and other microbes—were able to grow and turn the water a murky green in the subsequent days.

The revelation appears to contradict officials’ previous assurances that despite the emerald hue, which first appeared Tuesday, the waters were safe.

“Of course it’s an embarrassment,” Gustavo Nascimento, director of venue management for the Rio Olympics, told the New York Times. “We are hosting the Olympic Games, and athletes are here, so water is going to be an issue. We should have been better in fixing it quickly. We learned painful lessons the hard way.”



Read more: http://arstechnica.com/science/2016/08/wrong-chemical-dumped-into-olympic-pool-made-them-green-smelly-and-unsafe/?comments=1

[tonyt53]

1. I'm not a chemist but I think you end up with oxygen gas and the chlorine is enhanced.

The water might even take on the characteristics of salt water.

[B2G]

2. After a week declaring it safe and holding events.

Nice. Way to look out for the athletes, Rio.

[PJMcK]

3. I've had three swimming pools

And I mostly hated them! They require so much work and expense that their utility is questionable.

However, in junior high school I learned about basic chemistry and how Ph levels work. My first pool was my parents' and it was among my chores to maintain the pool, skimming, vacuuming and balancing the chemistry. We had a very simple test kit that I used to sample the water, add a couple of drops of a reactant, then compare the color of the sample to a test card that would indicate how much chlorine or potash to add to the pool. It was remarkably simple and accurate and only a couple of times did I get an algae bloom.

I was 11 to 18 years old and I could take care of the pool. What the hell is wrong in Brazil!

[William Seger]

9. When I worked as a lifeguard the summer after high school...

... we were required (not sure if it was city or state law) to test the chlorine every hour, and inspectors checked our log books. To get an algae bloom like that requires at least 24 hours, so I'm gonna guess that they aren't testing any of their pools. There's really no excuse for this; they should have known the chlorine was low long before it turned green,

[IslandSteve]

10. I have a 22x12 inground

And I can't seem to screw it up

Besides the tree leaves/flowers/seeds and iguana doody, it always looks great

I would imagine if the green diving pool happened in the United States during the Olympics, it would be drained and refilled with water overnight

These guys really messed up, and were clueless as how to get it back

[artyteacher]

4. hydrogen peroxide is for...

Non chlorine / baqucil pools.

[yallerdawg]

5. Coincidentally...

when you add chlorine to a "baquacil" pool - it turns green.

I know - I converted a number of "baquacil" pools back to cheaper, more reliable chlorine!

[artyteacher]

7. thats right....

It's a mess. My gf takes me to her carpool friends pool sometimes and it's right next to a pond so they told me all about how Baqucil is a little safer for that.

[Xipe Totec]

6. Ruby Sees All

[hunter]

8. They should have borrowed a pool guy from one of the big Las Vegas hotels.

After a few high profile lawsuits the big hotels now monitor their pool chemistry continuously and automated equipment keeps the active chlorine and pH at optimal levels.

[niyad]

11. can anybody tell me how likely it is that some of the swimmers could get really, really

sick, maybe not now, but later on?

how friggen' stupid does one have to be to make a mistake of this magnitude at this event? wouldn't you hire the most competent people possible? (reminds me of the problem with the hall of fame game that had to be cancelled because some idiot used the wrong paint on the field. )