By Jerry Fisayo-Bambi
Parisians on Saturday jumped into the river Seine 鈥攍egally鈥攆or the first time in more than 100 years, with cries of “woo” and “it is warm!” ringing out across the Seine.It comes as public swimming was allowed in designated areas of the Seine, including two newly built wooden decks near the Eiffel Tower and the 脦le Saint-Louis in central Paris. Before sunrise, a municipal officer skimmed away the last few patches of algae with a fishnet. Soon after, a line of eager Parisians formed, towels in hand, waiting for their chance to jump in. Wows and cries of joy echoed across the riverbanks as the first swimmers entered the emerald-green water. Under the careful supervision of a dozen lifeguards wearing high-visibility vests, each swimmer donned a bright yellow lifebuoy fastened around their waist. The current was weak, just enough to tug gently at their limbs鈥攁 reminder that this is still a living, urban river. 鈥淚t鈥檚 so nice to swim in the heart of the city, especially with the high temperatures we鈥檝e been having lately,鈥 said Amine Hocini, a 25-year-old construction worker from Paris. 鈥淚鈥檓 surprised because I thought it was going to be cooler, and in fact, it鈥檚 much warmer than I thought.鈥 The return to swimming follows a 1.4 billion euro cleanup project tied to last year鈥檚 Olympics. Officials now say the Seine meets European water quality standards on most days. Mayor Anne Hidalgo, who already took a dip last year, was there Saturday morning, holding up a transparent bottle filled with river water as a show of confidence. She said, 鈥淚t鈥檚 a childhood dream to make people swim in the Seine.”Water Quality is ‘exceptional’ Meanwhile, environmental authorities confirmed bacteria levels were well below official thresholds. “The water quality is ‘exceptional,'” said Marc Guillaume, the prefect for the Paris’ Ile-de-France region. “We are monitoring two bacteria, E. coli and enterococci, and for one we are ten times below the thresholds and for the other more than 25 times below,” he said.From the deck, tourists and morning joggers stopped to watch. Some applauded as swimmers climbed up the steel ladders, grinning and dripping. Others, like Fran莽ois Fournier, remained sceptical. 鈥淚 won鈥檛 risk it, quite frankly,鈥 said Fournier, who lives atop the riverbanks and observed the scene from a bridge above. 鈥淚鈥檝e seen things you can鈥檛 imagine floating in the Seine, so I鈥檒l wait for it to be really squeaky clean.鈥 Floating debris still bobbed here and there鈥攁 stray leaf, a plastic wrapper鈥攂ut the smell was barely noticeable: no strong sewage odour, just an earthy, river-like scent. 鈥淭his is so chic, to swim in the Seine, next to 脦le Saint-Louis,鈥 said Lucile Woodward, 43, a resident. 鈥淭here are some apprehensions, of course, any time you go to swim somewhere, but I think this is one of the most tested areas in the whole world now. I don鈥檛 think the town hall can allow itself to have any problems.鈥 She added with a laugh, 鈥淢y skin is OK.鈥 Swimming in the Seine had been illegal since 1923, with a few exceptions, due to pollution and risks posed by river navigation. Taking a dip outside bathing areas is still banned for safety reasons.