My friend and I went for a swim at round about 3pm on February 13.
Since my friend doesn’t have swimwear and I didn’t want her to be singled out, I wore a shirt as well, just like her.
After a few minutes, the lifeguard approached us and said we aren’t allowed to wear T-shirts so we got out.
We laid next to the pool for a few minutes and saw a lady getting undressed and getting in the pool with her bra and panty (a G-string at that).
A mom and her five children also came in and started swimming.
The mom sat next to the pool with a T-shirt on but only her ankles and feet were in the water. The lifeguard also approached her and he asked her to leave the pool.
My friend and I saw this happening so we went and asked if the lady with her underwear can also be asked to leave the pool since there was a lot of young children swimming as well. The lifeguard said no, this lady should move away from the pool since no T-shirts are allowed. I then asked how is it possible that ladies are allowed to swim in their underwear but not T-shirts.
He responded with “because she asked” and I then asked, if the mother can stay to watch her children, “if she can remove T-shirt then she can”.
The mother said that she isn’t comfortable with the idea, and this is not the first time this happened, where she got chased out because of her shirt and only feet in the water.
I then asked him (the lifeguard) once again, so underwear is fine but not T-shirts. He said if you are comfortable in a G-string you can swim but no T-shirts.
At that time the security was there to remove the mother from the poolside. On the rule board, it said no inappropriate clothing, only swimwear. Children were swimming there as well and saw the lady with everything on show, but the mother was removed because she didn’t want to take her T-shirt off.
She asked for a refund and they refused. Afterwards, the lady went and sat close to the entrance and the security and lifeguard still went on about it.
We explained to the lady security guard and she understood and agreed after explaining to her but the men lifeguards refused to let her in the pool. So only people showing some body are allowed? I understand no T-shirts but she only had her feet and ankles in the water. But underwear? That’s really inappropriate, especially with kids around.
Frustrated pool user
RECORD has contacted the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality for comment (as it is a municipal pool) regarding this incident, but they have not responded to our requests for comment.
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