3 Resign After Fall River Pool Death

Three state employees have lost their jobs because of a drowning at a pool in Fall River that went undetected for more than two days.

Edward Lambert, commissioner of the Department of Conservation and Recreation, said Wednesday that he requested the resignations of pool managers after reviewing initial findings about the June 26 drowning of 36-year-old Marie Joseph.

Chief Park Ranger Curt Rudge said the probe shows water clarity was inadequate and the pool should not have opened.

"The degree of cloudiness was a factor that contributed to the inability of anyone to detect Ms. Joseph's body until Tuesday night [June 28]," Rudge said.

Investigators say surveillance video showed Joseph going down a water slide into the deep end, surfacing briefly and bumping into a child before going under with no struggle. Her body was not found until it surfaced two days later.

State investigators say a lifeguard was watching the area near the slide, but a second should have been assigned there. Officials are suspending the use of slides at all state-owned pools.

Fall River Mayor William Flanagan tells the Associated Press that a city health inspector who checked the pool has been fired.

With reporting from the WBUR Newsroom and The Associated Press

Earlier: