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Chforficle BR Christopher Eance, a Grade 1 student at Mary Johnston school, did some fancy uompln%lllonday during the school‘s noon hour games program for Fitness Week. Activities continue throughout the week at many Waterloo schools. See page 10 for more pictures. isobe! Lawson photo (o®iPz. Tan eP e d i 4 GET FIT I:lets 488 o lA & * . s :2? ho dn k E‘.m“’? UVE sop Vaterloo. Ontari While Strothard finds fault with the whole boxâ€"culvert design of the stretch of Laurel Creek from city centre to Erb Street, it is the current railing that most disturbs her. it offers an invitation to children to attempt climbing it, she said. ~;ln rewm:ty lb‘:l“(.bllckyard k i ilati t ) swimâ€" W) ming pools when they have the equivalent That kind of fall could badly injure a child, she said. And, once down in the creek, it would be difficult for a child to climb out, especially during the spring "It only takes a few inches for someone to drown. And for eight months of the year the water is freezing cold â€" it would be a terrible shock." City council and administrators should realize the city could be sued if a child fell into such an obviously unsafe area, Strothard said. "Their priorities are screwed up. To spend $37,500 for a sculpture and then a few feet away have an unsafe creek." Pointing to the fence, she said, "This should have the minimum standards of That night, Strothard had nightmares that her child fell into the concreteâ€"lined creek, was hurt and trapped. She called city hall to ask that something be done to make the area safer. Nothing was done, and Strothard continues to worry that a serious accident will one day occur. _ mnm fence,?" "Somewhere there must be a fence that combines safety and aesthetics." When city hall relocated, the creek was channeled, creating a threeâ€"sided concrete box from Regina Street through to Erb Street. The walls average five foot, three inches in height, increasing to 12 feet at the bridge near the sculpture. The Waterloo mother had been to the Sounds of Summer festival that day, and on the way back to her home at 181 Herbert Street, her family stopped off at the city centre to look at the sculpture. Her child wandered near the creek, and had to be called back. Lori Strothard had a nightmare last June that continues to haunt her. lan Kirkby Chronicle Staff NIGHTMARE Uptown concrete creek may pose safety threat Creek with daughter Kerri. Strothard believes the threeâ€"sided concrete waterway is a hazard to children. safety," "The gaps here are too wide and it‘s climbable. You can put your feet there. Strothard believes the city should look at decorative vertical cemetary fencing as an alternative. "If they used common sense, they could do better and still have it look nice and have an effective barrier." If the city had been really smart. it would have left the creek as it was ‘‘Nothing is safer than a natural river You have lots of places to elimb out of " "It should be vertical railings, evenly spaced and with no horizontal bars. so you can‘t get a foothold." lan Kirkby photo 50 cents |