It is forbidden to rent a B&B where the pool is not fenced and locked, the rabbis state • In addition, they emphasize: Pools and even buckets of water should be kept in homes

• Archive photo // Photo: Ancho Josh Ginny

As every year, members of the Emet organization for Yaakov, which works to prevent dangers in general and children in particular, publish the ruling in which the great rabbis in the ultra-Orthodox world make it clear that there is a halakhic ban on renting a vacation spot that includes an unfenced and locked pool. In addition, the rabbis call for guarding against home pools and supervising children near water. Today (Tuesday) a child drowned in a B&B and is in critical condition and is being taken to hospital. 

Data from an organization prior to child safety indicate that drowning is the second most common cause of child mortality from injuries. So far this year, 8 children have drowned. When in the summer of last year 13 children drowned, drowning occurs in silence and speed. A drowning child cannot shout and warn that he is in danger because his mouth and head are waterlogged. Children up to the age of 5 may also drown in water only a few inches deep, so it is important not to be near the water unattended. 

In the ruling, the rabbis specify the conditions under which it is possible to rent a B&B or an apartment with a private pool. Among other things, they state that it must be ensured that the pool is fenced with a partition 1.10 meters high from the ground to prevent the entry of children and toddlers without supervision. It is also emphasized in the ruling that in all water bodies inside the home, including a bucket of water, it is obligatory to ensure the presence of a responsible adult whose job it is to supervise the child without distraction. 

The ruling is signed by well-known rabbis, including Chief Rabbi Yitzchak Yosef, Rabbi Simcha Rabinowitz and Rabbi Naftali Nussbaum. The rabbis of the city of Bnei Brak, Rabbi Chaim Yitzchak Isaac Landau and Rabbi Shevach Zvi Rosenblatt, joined the ruling.

Towards the days between the times, Rabbi Yehuda Silman, Rabbi Shimon Badani, and Rabbi Shriel Rosenberg issued a statement for the preservation of body and mind, noting that travel to places where various obstacles are expected, including spiritual and physical dangers, should be avoided. The rabbis stressed that trips to dangerous places without proper preparation, pools and water reservoirs that are not fenced and bathing in the sea without supervision should be avoided.