Barcelona City Council has closed the Mirall d'aigua ornamental fountain in Plaça de les Glòries from Friday, as a safety measure for the summer. The council says people have been using it for bathing, even though it is not designed for that use.
First Deputy Mayor Laia Bonet confirmed the closure to journalists. She said ornamental fountains are not swimming pools or places meant for playing or cooling down. The fountain uses recirculated water, which is not potable, and the area carries a risk of slips and falls. The same preventative step was taken last summer.
Bonet said the council cannot allow accidents to happen because the fountain is being used as a water play area when it is not one. Plaça de les Glòries is one of Barcelona's key urban hubs, so the city says public safety there is a priority.
At the same time, the council has doubled the number of dedicated water play areas across Barcelona, from nine to 18 this year. Ten are already open, and the other eight will open in the coming weeks. The new areas will run from 10:00 to 20:00, instead of closing at midday as they did last year. Three districts that did not have these facilities before, Sarrià-Sant Gervasi, Sants and Gràcia, now have them.
Barcelona also has 15 outdoor public swimming pools, with five open now and the other ten due to open during June. The council has also reopened the pool at the Montjuïc municipal tennis courts this year. For official city information on public facilities, see Barcelona City Council and its municipal pools page.
Originally published by 20 Minutos Barcelona. Read original article.
