When the popular Brennan Park Aquatic Centre was temporarily closed by the regional health authority earlier this year, no matter how much or how little the District of Squamish shared about what was happening behind the scenes, locals wondered if they were getting the whole story.
Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH) documents that The Squamish Chief gained access to through a freedom of information request show that once in motion, the system of checks and balances worked as it should, but also that there was more than one slip and fall that preceded the steam room and pool closure this winter.
The steam room was shut by a closure order from VCH on Jan. 17 and reopened on June 23.
(According to the District, some minor maintenance issues resulted in a subsequent short closure for repairs. The steam room was repaired and opened again on June 25.)
The pools and hot tub were closed by a VCH order on Feb. 12 and reopened just over seven weeks later, on April 2.
So far, the District says remediation of the facility has cost a total of $36,000.
According to District staff, a budget request for 2026 has been submitted for review, which “is intended to explore and potentially develop and install an upgraded pool deck.”
The freedom of information documents cover the period of mid-January to late March this year.
For its part, the District told The Squamish Chief that it understands the impact of the pool facility closure.
“The District recognizes what an important asset the pool is to the community and understands the impacts that the closure had on our staff, residents, and its user groups,” District media relations specialist Lilly Marie Peterson said in an email.
“District staff are focused on prioritizing pool-user safety and long-term preventative maintenance for continued use.”
Timeline of events
On Jan. 15, an email from District staff asks Vancouver Coastal Health about slip resistance protection for the steam room due to a slip and fall incident.
Also on Jan. 15, a pool inspection report by environmental health officer Angela Whalen, of VCH, states that there was a site visit to the Squamish Aquatic Centre after the request from District staff for information about anti-slip treatments for the surface of the pool deck.
"Pool aprons and walkways, and floors do not have a surface that is slip-resistant when wet," the inspection report reads.
Whalen says in the report that "surfaces in the steam room feel slick" and may not meet the required dynamic coefficient of friction (DCOF).
The report called on the District to provide documentation from the tile manufacturer to confirm that the surface had the standard of DCOF required or, alternatively, hire someone qualified to test the tiles.
The report required the District to close the steam room until authorization to reopen was granted by a health officer.
On Jan. 16, during a follow-up to the previous day's site visit, District staff supplied documentation to VCH about the tiles and an invoice for the new blue tiles in the steam room. The environmental health officer determined the new tiles did not meet the required anti-slip resistance for wet surfaces, based on information contained in the product spec sheets.
The District was instructed to keep the steam room closed to the public until one of the following:
1) Field testing by an independent third party is conducted to demonstrate that the tiles meet anti-slip requirements, or:
2) Another solution is implemented that mitigates the risk of slipping.
The report notes that over the course of this investigation, the health officer learned the slip that occurred in the steam room took place on the floor, "which is original tile also located throughout the facility." Therefore, the District was ordered to have an independent third party conduct anti-slip testing on a number of floor tiles throughout the facility, and to forward the results of that testing to the officer.
On Feb. 11, a VCH site visit was conducted to view and collect daily pool records, which the report notes were adequately maintained and available.
According to Feb. 11 correspondence, third-party results about slip testing are forwarded from the District to VCH, saying that "all eight tests failed," including the steam room bench and floor and six spots on the pool deck.
A Feb. 11 document includes accident reports for the six years going back to 2018. The exact dates were redacted.
All but one were classified as "minor accidents" involving patrons. One accident involved staff.
Between March 2018 and January 2025, at least 16 slip-related incidents were reported across various areas of the facility—including showers, changing rooms, pool decks, and ramps
These included:
1) January, 2025
2) November, 2024
3) June, 2024
4) February, 2024
5) October, 2023
6) May, 2023
7) February, 2023
8) February, 2023
9) February, 2023
10) August, 2023
11) May, 2022, involving staff
12) October, 2021
13) January, 2019
14) March, 2018
15) April, 2018
16) March, 2018
According to the documents, all incidents were related to slipping incidents in the following areas:
• Ramp to hot tub
• Women’s shower
• Outside women's changing room
• Side of deck by pirate ship water feature
• Pool deck
• Women's changing room
• Bottom of hot tub ramp
• Steam room
• Viewing area
• Guardroom
• Men's shower
(The District told The Squamish Chief on July 18, that there have not been any incident reports filed since the pool reopened.)
After the accident reports, the documents show there was some back and forth between District staff and VCH, with municipal staff seeking solutions or help with the process around the closure, including an exchange asking about a closure to the pool in Whistler and a request for that facility's documentation.
In response, the health officer said that officers had closed a number of facilities over slipping hazards, "mostly in Whistler, where the vast majority of our permitted recreational water facilities are located.”
The health officer said 95% of the cases of closures were due to failed heat trace systems, which are designed to keep pool decks clear of ice and snow.
On Feb. 12, the Vancouver Coastal Health pool inspection report confirms that at the direction of the health officer, the District contracted a qualified professional to carry out slip resistance testing in accordance with industry-accepted standards for slip testing. The report from that professional was provided to VCH on Feb. 11, the inspection report reads.
"The report indicated none of the areas tested met the required safety standards for slip resistance when wet. Testing took place on the 1x1 mosaic tiles in the steam room and on the 6x6 quarry tile flooring in seven locations throughout the facility."
VCH issued a closure order for the Squamish pool.
In correspondence in March, District staff shared a reluctance to hire more staff as a solution to reduce slips and falls.
"We don't think additional staffing will translate to reduced slip and falls and we feel a more holistic approach, including all our existing staff in providing enhanced training and implementing operational changes—as per our pool safety plan—will help improve safety regarding slip and falls," wrote a District staff person in an email on March 21.
The health officer responded that it was unclear if more staffing would prevent more falls.
(On July 19, the District confirmed to The Squamish Chief that pool facility staff are now trained on new slippery areas mapping and reporting procedures. Supervisors are responsible for submitting any incident reports to VCH monthly.)
On Mar. 24, an inspection of the pool was conducted after a request from the District to reconsider the closure order issued on Feb. 12.
The inspection report notes that the District had slip testing conducted by an independent third party.
"A sealed engineer's report dated March 12, 2025 detailing and evaluating the test findings was provided to VCH, along with a request for reconsideration of the closure orders," the report reads.
The inspection report on March 24 says that the DOS's request for reconsideration proposed the installation of additional signage indicating that the pool deck and walkways may be slippery.
In response, VCH accepted this, with some conditions, such as where the signs need to be, and the like.
The inspection notes the District also reported completing a deep cleaning of the pool deck with a degreaser, high-speed scrubbing and power-washing, and updating the facility's Pool Safety Plan (PSP) with enhanced cleaning protocols.
VCH confirms in the documents that these were done.
VCH accepted these actions, again with some tweaks requested.
The inspection report further says that it called on the District to hire a qualified third party to conduct a safety audit focused specifically on slip/fall risks and mitigation measures, including historical incidents, high-risk areas, signage, cleaning methods and frequency, record keeping, staff training, and supervision and submit that report to VCH by Sept. 1, 2025.
The pool reopened on April. 2.
The steam room remained closed for 18 weeks, reopening on June 23, following the removal and replacement of its bench tiles.
The District said this week that the new steam room bench tiles meet an “acceptable level of slip resistance for public use,” as defined by Terrazzo, Tile and Marble Association of Canada and the American National Standards Institute standards.
The municipality confirmed that regarding the pool closure, all items requested via the VCH Pool Inspection Report were submitted to VCH within the relevant deadlines. For the steam room, District Staff are awaiting the results of a safety audit, which is under review.
What the documents don't show
The freedom of information department of VCH told The Squamish Chief it redacted information related to “13 (1) of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FIPPA)" which states information can be withheld when release of this information would reveal advice or recommendations developed by or for a public body.
VCH added that they redacted information which, if disclosed, would harm a third party's business interests. This was under Section 21(1) of FIPPA.
Further, they redacted personal information "because release of this information would be an unreasonable invasion of a third party’s privacy."
This section states, "the head of a public body must refuse to disclose personal information to an applicant if the disclosure would be an unreasonable invasion of a third party's personal privacy.”
Ultimately, VCH withheld 145 pages entirely under Section 21 and four pages under Section 13 of the act.
The freedom of information documentation was requested on March 25, 2025, and the documents were received on June 13, 2025.
2025 F 247 Response (Redacted) by Jennifer Thuncher on Scribd
