Winnipeg offering fewer swimming lessons than in past years amid lifeguard shortage
After a number of parents were left frustrated this week over not getting their kids into swimming lessons, the City of Winnipeg confirmed a drop in the number of courses it offers.
On Wednesday, the city confirmed there are 1,057 swimming lesson courses being offered in spring 2023. This is about half the number of lessons that were completed in spring 2019 when there were 2,118 courses.
The number of lessons has steadily dropped since 2019. In fall 2022, the city offered 1,500 swimming lesson courses, and in winter 2023 there were 1,350 course options.
Winnipeg provided these numbers after the Leisure Guide sign-up on Tuesday when a number of parents took to social media to vent over a lack of swimming lesson spots.
"Full, full, full – all my options were full," said mother of three Lindsay Primmer. "I went basically back to scratch to everything on every single class and that was at 8:03 [a.m.]"
Community services committee chair Coun. John Orlikow told CTV News Winnipeg the lack of spots has to do with a shortage of lifeguards and instructors, which is an impact of the pandemic.
"As we reopened, we quickly realized a lot of those lifeguards weren't coming back," Orlikow said.
According to the city, 84 per cent of swimming lessons for spring 2023 have been filled. Parents are encouraged to check online for swimming lesson options.
Winnipeg added that it currently has about 255 lifeguards, but its target is to secure 300 before the summer.
The city continues to recruit lifeguards and is making efforts to fill the vacancies; however, it expects it will take time to return to full staffing levels.
The city said as it provides more certified staff to its team, it will expand its swimming course offerings.
- With files from CTV’s Jeff Keele.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Western University researchers unlock potential 'cure' for ALS
New research out of London, Ont.'s Western University is shedding light on a potential cure for ALS, in which the targeting of the interaction between two proteins can halt or fully reverse the disease's progression.
Police release 3D images of young child found in an Ontario river two years ago
Police have released a three-dimensional image of a young child whose remains were discovered in the Grand River in Dunnville, Ont. almost two years ago.
A child killer legally changed his name in B.C. The province is trying to stop that from happening again
The BC NDP have tabled legislation aimed at stopping people who have committed certain heinous acts from changing their names.
Collapsed Baltimore bridge span comes down with a boom after crews set off chain of explosives
Crews conducted a controlled demolition Monday to break down the largest remaining span of the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore.
Kamala Harris drops F-bomb during White House live-stream
U.S. Vice-President Kamala Harris used a profanity on Monday while offering advice to young Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders about how to break through barriers.
Mortgage companies could intensify the next recession, U.S. officials warn
U.S. officials worry the next recession could be intensified by a cascading series of failures in the mortgage industry caused by crashing home prices, frozen financial markets and soaring delinquencies.
What Michael Cohen said on the stand in Trump hush money case
The star prosecution witness in Donald Trump's hush money trial took the stand Monday with testimony that could help shape the outcome of the first criminal case against an American president.
Security video caught admitted serial killer disposing of bodies in Winnipeg garbage bins
Security video caught admitted serial killer Jeremy Skibicki on multiple late-night outings, disposing of body parts in nearby garbage bins and dumpsters in the middle of the night.
Behind the barricades: How protesters spend their first days in a new encampment
Students in Montreal describe life in a newly erected encampment in Montreal as a whirlwind of preparations, from facing rain and a potential police crackdown to setting up a space for the exchange of ideas.