A small water feature funded by a sheltered housing residents’ bingo winnings is the second in the city which could be filled in amid fears about...Ickle children falling in?
...legionnaires’ disease.Errr....
Joyce Hutson, 77, is leading the charge to protect the feature in Elwyn Jones Court, which was put in by the council about a year ago.
She said: “Everything is getting out of hand with this council. Enough is enough.
“It’s only a little one with water trickling over the side.”Well, quite!
And....wait. Don't councils usually have lots of public fountains? Won't they pose the same risks?
The council said no decisions have been taken and that a report will be produced once risk assessments have been carried out.
It has also said the action only concerns water features in housing schemes and not public fountains.How fortunate. And how ludicrous...
Green Councillor Alexandra Phillips, deputy chairwoman of housing, said: “These legionella concerns are legitimate, and legally the council must make sure residents are safe.
“Officers are looking into the options available if residents would like to keep their water features,”I think you should make the effort. We'll need somewhere to drown you all when we finally come to our senses...
Postscript: When I first saw this story, it had attracted (as you'd expect!) a lot of comment, most of it unfavourable. I uprated a few comments - those slating the council and linking to peer-reviewed reports showing the lack of danger - I liked myself.
Imagine my surprise to find those comments all heavily downgraded when I came back a week or so later to blog it. Not was I the only one to notice:
Of course, it could just be that the ordinary bloke in the street thinks that the council is in the right, and has exercised his option to do so via the local rag's comment approval section.
Couldn't it?
I followed your link, Julia, and then started reading the comments, and like you started liking the withering criticisms of the council, before I read the rest of your post, so I too am baffled why apparently so many people support them.
ReplyDeleteThis changing of like/no like is quite normal in the MSM. I have screen grabs of some comments from the Mail which show very high agreement with a comment that is against the views expressed in the article and a few minutes later the numbers have been swapped over - strange that.
ReplyDeleteLegionella is only a potential problem in water systems hotter than 25C. So unless Brighton is experiencing elevated ambient temperatures (due to having a green believing-in-AGW MP perhaps?), it's nonsense. (An annual treatment with a little bleach will kill any bugs anyway.) The council obviously have another "reason" for disliking this innocuous fountain.
ReplyDeleteThe Legionella hysteria is out of control. Ever since some dozy council numpty didn't make sure a condenser was cleaned properly, and killed a fair few suceptible people, the ptb have lost the plot. More people have died from scalding because hot water is too hot, than have ever died from legionella. It takes very specific and fairly rare circumstances for it to be a problem. If it was, you would die every time you had a shower at home.
ReplyDelete"...so I too am baffled why apparently so many people support them."
ReplyDeleteIt's very easy to skew these sort of 'polls' - the mystery is who has the time and inclination?
"The council obviously have another "reason" for disliking this innocuous fountain."
It's not council-approved and (unionised) council staff-maintained, perhaps?
"More people have died from scalding because hot water is too hot, than have ever died from legionella."
Rather like 'asbestos threat', another overrated killer...