Malden Officials Close Boathouse Due To River Contaminants: Report

MALDEN, MA—Both the Malden High School and Mystic Valley Regional Charter High School's crew teams will be without their home boathouse and dock due to contaminants in the Malden river, among other safety concerns.

The Boston Globe reported Thursday that City Officials closed the boathouse and dock in order to develop rules which hope to protect students from exposure to contaminants. The report also indicates that the Malden facility is set to reopen by Mid-April.

Reports John Laidler, who broke the story on the Globe's website.

Officials said the action was not a response to any specific incident but instead a proactive step to protect the health and safety of Malden students and those from visiting crew teams.

The rules will ensure all crew teams using Malden’s facilities follow common precautions on the urban river, including hosing down crew members who fall overboard, Brown said. They will also establish clear policy for shutting down use of the river when bacterial levels are high.

In addition, the protocols will cover common water safety measures such as requiring members of all crew teams to be certified swimmers.

Though the intent is “to keep kids safe and away from the pollutants,” Brown said, “There is no history that any of our kids have ever been sick or hurt” as a result of taking part in the crew program.

Malden High School, the Malden Redevelopment Authority and the Malden Superintendent's office were not immediately available for comment. Check back with Patch for updates.

Stock image via Morguefile.