SAN DIEGO (KGTV) -- After months without any organized sports or youth activities, the San Diego Junior Lifeguard program resumed Monday under strict guidelines to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
For Addison Watson, it was a day she thought would never come. On Monday, she joined hundreds of other kids to take part in the San Diego Junior Lifeguard program.
“I’ve been sitting in my room on a desk with my computer, staring at a screen. This is nice to be outside,” Addison said.
When the COVID-19 pandemic shut everything down, there was a concern there wouldn’t be a program this summer.
However, organizers pressed on and prepared just in case. Once the green light was given by San Diego County health officials, they had everything up and running.
The program opened up with health measures in place, including having families do health screenings at home. Additionally, each participant and the entire staff will have to go through another health and temperature screening on site each day.
Participants and staff are also required to wear masks and will have to follow social distancing guidelines. To help with distancing, the program will be spread out at more locations.
The participants will also be broken up into smaller groups -- unlike before, they will stay within this group to keep the interaction to fewer people.
Heather Rabe, program manager for the San Diego Junior Lifeguard Program, said, “We're following an operational safety protocol plan that we've been developing and working on and adjusting as new guidelines have come out for the last two months.”
10News was also told other agencies within the state and outside of California will use this similar model when it comes to their aquatic programs.
