HOUSTON COUNTY, Ga. — For now, there's more concrete than water, more slide scrubbers than lifeguards, but in a few weeks, things will look very different at Rigby's Water World.
Employees are working to get the park ready for their summer opening, and general manager Steve Brown says they'll be ready for what he hopes will be a big crowd. "I would like to see 3,000, 4,000 people come out over the weekend," said Brown.
That weekend is May 18th and 19th, when the park is hosting a soft opening before it opens its gates 7 days a week for the summer starting May 25th.
Before they get to that point, though, they've got to get through a 16-day push to put the finishing touches on the park and its main attraction -- a massive water feature boasting 10 slides.
"All the water for this feature is underneath the ground, so it's ready, it's just, we're getting it cleaned up, getting it pressure washed, getting it waxed, and then we can fire the water up and make a big splash," said Brown.
Brown says, as usual, they'll keeping a close eye on water safety.
Last summer, Rigby's Water World was investigated by the Department of Public Health after an outbreak of a typically non-lethal water-borne parasite called Cryptosporidium was linked to swimmers who said they visited the water park.
"That's our number one priority -- to keep our facility and our pool safe," Brown said.
During the investigation last summer, North Central Health District spokesperson Michael Hokanson said Rigby's was quick to respond to the issue. "They've followed all the regulations and guidelines to respond to a...recreational water illness," he said at the time.
Brown says they use a high-tech monitoring system to track chemical levels in the water in real-time to keep risks low and says visitors can help drop the risk even lower.
"We ask that our guests do their part as well by taking frequent bathroom breaks, take showers before you get in the pool, practice good hygiene," Brown said. "This is not your bathtub. Never drink the water, obviously, because even chlorinated water can make you sick."
He says even then, some risk always remains when thousands of people are sharing the water, but he says it's rare for something to go wrong.
Now, Brown says he's looking forward to clean water, hot sun, and a long summer."You see the kids running around the water splashing, everybody's having a great time," he said.
The park will stay open 7 days a week until August 3rd. After that, it will be open weekends only. It will close for the season after Labor Day.
Michael Hokanson with the North Central Health District says, as part of standard procedure, his office will inspect the park before it opens to the public.