Sanitization of Pasadena Parks Completed; Playground Safety Surfacing Replaced

An aerial view of Victory Park (Photo – City of Pasadena)

The City of Pasadena Parks, Recreation, and Community Services (PRCS) Department has completed the process of sanitizing City parks, fields, and playground equipment, as well as replacing sand and engineered wood fiber (safety surfacing) in play areas, following the Eaton Fire.

By News Desk

While no specific hazards were identified, PRCS has taken these precautions out of an abundance of caution to minimize the potential risk of exposure to wildfire contaminants.

At all parks, City staff:

• Sanitized park benches, tables, playground equipment, and poured-in-place rubber playground surfacing (effective February);
• Rinsed the natural turf fields through irrigation and rain (effective February);
• Sanitized synthetic turf fields (effective early March); and
• Replaced the top three inches of sand and engineered wood fiber at all play areas with new sand/fiber (effective late March).

Additional actions taken since the Eaton Fire in January include:

• PRCS taff followed public health guidelines to restore water clarity and chemistry at the Honorable John J. Kennedy Pool. The pool’s sides and bottom were scrubbed, the pool water was vacuumed, filters were backwashed, and chlorine and pH levels were reset. The pool reopened on January 18.
• All community and recreation centers were cleared. After testing and monitoring air quality, the centers reopened on January 14.

PRCS encourages the public to follow public health guidelines when assessing the risk of exposure and taking precautions to protect their health during outdoor activities. Daily air quality information is available on the South Coast Air Quality Management District website.