Four people shocked in swimming pool, County Environmental Health Investigates

A Palm Desert Resort pool remains closed, the day after four people were electrically shocked while swimming in the Chuckawalla pool at the Marriot Shadow Ridge Resort. The four victims suffered minor injuries Wednesday afternoon. The Riverside County Department of Environmental Health’s Indio office is investigating the cause of the electrical failure.

We learned the Chuckawalla pool had been inspected on March 28 about three months prior to the malfunction.

Shantel Bacon, with the Riverside County Department of Environmental Health, took CBS Local 2 and KESQ’s Lauren Coronado on a walk-through during a routine inspection of a public pool in Palm Springs.

Pool enclosures, pool water chemistry, rescue mechanisms and electrical components are just a number of items inspected.

“This is the underwater lights and you can see that it’s secure in the housing. Water and electricity do not mix. You will get electrically shocked. However, lights are required to have grounding, GFCI (ground fault circuit interrupter) so that prevents that from happening,” Bacon said.

County environmental health inspections are performed twice a year. During in between periods, the county requires public pool owners and operators to log and complete a daily walk-through inspection. Bacon says accidents can be prevented but are sometimes unavoidable.

“Part of deeming it safe is finding out what happened. If it was the underwater light or something else. At this point I don’t know what led to the electrocution or the tingling sensation. Once they determine that and do the repairs, if repairs need to be done, then it will be reopened,” Bacon said.

Read: Palm Desert pool closed Thursday after four people were shocked while swimming Wednesday

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Read: Tips from Riverside County Health Department for pool & spa safety Read: New safety concerns you should be aware of while swimming in a pool