Almost a year after the Olympic athletes, the first bathers dived on Saturday, 5, in the waters of Sena, right in the center of Paris, which authorized the bath in Rio for the first time since 1923.
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It was not yet 8 am and dozens of people, with yellow floats attached to the waist, already waiting for the great moment in one of the three designated areas for bath, equipped with stairs, showers and locker rooms.
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Near the Eiffel Tower or in front of île Saint-Louis, near Notre-Dame Cathedral, residents and tourists will be able to make free use of these delimited facilities, which will offer a leisure and refreshment space in Paris.
“I have been very happy! I had dreamed of swimming in Seine for years,” said Ingrid, a 95 -year -old Parisian dressed in a turquoise bath. Accompanied by her granddaughter, she was one of the first people to test the waters in Bercy, one of the three qualified points.
Promised as a legacy of the Olympic Games, the possibility of bathing in Sena also responds to a need for adaptation to climate change in the French capital, which this week reached almost 40 ° C due to a heat wave in Europe.
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“Paris is fortunate to be ahead of his time because, with the extreme heat that will only increase in our cities, (…) investing in natural areas to swim is essential,” said Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo, present at the inauguration.
“It’s a childhood dream to get people to swim in the seine,” he added.
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Access to the areas is free and will work within the schedules established by August 31, if the weather allows. However, there will be a restricted capacity, between 150 and 700 people, depending on the place.
Toby, an American from California, shared his joy with AFP.
“We are enjoying a lot. We are the first in 100 years to be able to do that,” he said.
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You have to know how to swim to enter the Sena River
Authorities invested more than 1.4 billion euros (about R $ 8.96 billion) to improve the water quality of the river, with wastewater capture works to prevent them from disagreeing with it.
But since rainwater and residual waters blend into a single network, the only solution in case of abundant rainfall is to pour them into the seine.
This occurred a year ago, during the Olympic Games, which caused delays in some programmed tests in Rio because the water was not suitable for bathing.
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As on the beaches, a system of flags (green, yellow and red) informs about the flow and water quality of the river, which will be analyzed with instant probes and collected samples. If there is red flag, the bath will be forbidden.
The three open areas will also have strong surveillance, to the point that bathers need to go through a test to prove that they can swim without help.
“There is a risk of drowning due to sludge and adhered plants, strong currents, the risk of thermal shock and river traffic,” said sub -mayor Elise Lavielle.
Last year, there were thirteen deaths in Seine and the balance is already three this year, he added.
Although the strong heat of summer can try some to jump out in the water outside these areas, a regulation came into force at the end of June to penalize bathing in unauthorized spaces.
The city, the main European river port for passenger transport, will also reinforce control over vessel drivers.
For next year, the continuation of the decontamination work of the river should result in the installation of new bath areas around the capital.
For now, there are four other places already qualified on the Marne River, the main tributary of Seine.
