Ordinances on pool fences vary little from city to city

Ordinances that require fencing around swimming pools vary little from town to town, though deficiencies in those fences may go undetected for years.

Kingston Administrator Paul Keating said the municipality has fencing regulations but, once a pool is installed and the fence erected, Keating said that follow-up inspections are not routinely done. Any deficiencies in fencing can go unnoticed for years, he said.

“We don’t have any routine inspections for fences installed years ago,” Keating said. “However, if we receive a call alerting us to a problem, we will investigate it immediately.”

Fencing around a pool must be between 4 feet and 6 feet high and applies to above-ground and in-ground pools.

“Our ordinance is designed to prevent access by children from the street or from adjacent properties,” he said.

Two young siblings drowned Tuesday in an in-ground pool in the backyard of a Wilkes-Barre residence. Police said the children, ages 7 and 5, gained access via a latched gate.

It was the second such incident at a residential pool this summer. A 2-year-old girl drowned in an in-ground pool in Forty Fort in early August.

State Police said the Wilkes-Barre victims, Abagail Grivner and her brother, Andres Rivera, did not know how to swim.

Butch Frati, Wilkes-Barre’s director of operations, said all concerns about pool fences, as well as property line fences, are investigated and resolved.

Wilkes-Barre’s ordinance for in-ground pools requires a permanent fence that is at least 4 feet high and encloses the pool or the entire property. It also requires a gate with a secured lock. Above-ground pools require 4-foot fencing or a barrier that is at least 4 feet high which could include the pool wall. Pools less than 4 feet deep would require a 4-foot fence.

Access to Wilkes-Barre pools must be secured by a gate with a lock and all steps or ladders must be retractable.

In West Pittston, in-ground pools are required to have a 6-foot high fence, according to the town’s ordinance, said Savino Bonita, borough manager. Most municipalities require 4-foot fences be erected around in-ground pools.

“I’m sure the thinking here was that a higher fence would make access more difficult, especially for small children,” Bonita said. “Above-ground pools require a 4-foot fence.”

The Pennsylvania Uniform Construction Code, which was approved in 2004, established guidelines to use in developing ordinances like those for swimming pools.

“If an above-ground pool is less than 4 feet in depth, a fence is required around the property or around the pool,” Bonita said. “Also, all gates must be locked and ladders for the above-ground pools must be lifted from the ground and locked.”

Joe Andrews, zoning officer for Bear Creek and Rice townships, said both municipalities abide by the state guidelines of 4-foot fences for yards with in-ground pools. Above-ground pools less than 4 feet in depth require fencing, while pools that are 4 feet deep or deeper do not require fencing.

“Ladders for above-ground pools must be lifted off of the ground and locked,” Andrews said.

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Most municipalities have regulations requiring 4- to 6-foot barriers.

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