Safety hazard fixed but old pipe could be an ongoing issue as Barton Springs Pool reopens

Swimmers are back at on Thursday after a safety hazard was fixed.

The reopening is getting a lot of fanfare because of how long Barton Springs Pool was closed. No one can remember the jewel of the city being shut down for three weeks.

The chance to jump back in 68-degree water on a 95-degree day was too enticing for some Barton Springs fans to miss.

"I was very excited. I was checking their website almost daily," said swimmer Adnan Chowdhury.

"I took the day off and had to come in, for sure. Barton Springs is back open and you've got to be here," said swimmer Raphael Jaras.

No one was anticipating Thursday's reopening more than Ken Hayes.

"I like the cool water in the summertime, and I like the diving board," said Hayes.

Thursday morning he did a double front tuck in honor of the pool reopening on one of his milestone birthdays.

"It's my birthday, my 75th birthday," said Hayes.

The spring-fed pool was able to welcome back swimmers after two holes in an old 1940s skimmer pipe were repaired. Gravel or river rock was used to fill the holes and cover the pipe.

"The pipe runs all the way up to the dam and all the way down to that dam and beyond," said Aaron Levine, City of Austin Aquatics Program Manager.

The holes created a safety hazard for swimmers.

"It just created this incredible suction," said Levine.

The fear was that someone could get their hand or foot stuck in a hole and not have the strength to pull it out.

"That was a real challenge," said Levine.

Levine told CBS Austin the city tried to balance the fix with protecting the endangered Barton Springs Salamander and getting the pool back open during 90+ degree weather.

"They drilled a hole in the spillway, and they pumped concrete up the pipe as far as they could go," said Levine.

Levine said removing the entire pipe or completely filling it with concrete would have taken months.

"With it being a 1940's pipe is this something you think we're going to see over and over again," asked reporter Bettie Cross.

"Quite possibly," said Levine.

But by filling part of the pipe with concrete, the city doesn't think future holes will create the same safety hazards.

"We shouldn't have the same kind of suction and entrapment issues that we had in the past," said Levine.

Ken Hayes wasn't happy with Thursday's double front tuck. But he was thrilled with the coincidence that the reopening happened on his birthday.

"This is probably the main reason I stayed in Austin," said Hayes. "What other city has something like this right downtown."

is normally closed on Thursdays which is why there was not a very big crowd on opening day. But don't expect that to be the case on Friday or during the weekend.

Deep Eddy Pool resumed normal operating hours on Thursday, opening at 8 a.m. instead of 6 a.m.