Seneca Lake State Park is a
state park
State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the sub-national level within those nations which use "state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on account of its natural ...
located in
Seneca County,
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
New York may also refer to:
Film and television
* '' ...
in the United States.
The park is at the north end of
Seneca Lake, one of the
Finger Lakes
The Finger Lakes are a group of eleven long, narrow, roughly north–south lakes located south of Lake Ontario in an area called the ''Finger Lakes region'' in New York, in the United States. This region straddles the northern and transitional ...
. The park is south of and between
Geneva
Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...
and
Waterloo.
Description
Seneca Lake State Park offers a beach, picnic tables, biking, boat launches, fishing and ice fishing. A "Sprayground"
water park
A water park (or waterpark, water world) is an amusement park that features water play areas such as swimming pools, water slides, splash pads, water playgrounds, and lazy rivers, as well as areas for floating, bathing, swimming, and other baref ...
, as well as an adjacent traditional playground, are available for children ages 4 to 12. Two marinas with a total of 216 slips are also available at the park.
[
]
History
The park began as a municipal park developed by the city of Geneva
Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...
in 1922. The park was opened as Seneca Lake State Park in 1957 after the city transferred the land to the state of New York. The park's "Sprayground" was opened in 2002.[
]
2005 cryptosporidiosis outbreak
On August 1, 2005, the park closed its "Sprayground" water park after the parasite
Parasitism is a close relationship between species, where one organism, the parasite, lives on or inside another organism, the host, causing it some harm, and is adapted structurally to this way of life. The entomologist E. O. Wilson has ...
''Cryptosporidium
''Cryptosporidium'', sometimes informally called crypto, is a genus of apicomplexan parasitic alveolates that can cause a respiratory and gastrointestinal illness (cryptosporidiosis) that primarily involves watery diarrhea (intestinal cryptosp ...
'' was discovered in the tanks supplying the attraction. By September 1 of that year, over 3,800 people had reported symptoms of cryptosporidiosis
Cryptosporidiosis, sometimes informally called crypto, is a parasitic disease caused by ''Cryptosporidium'', a genus of protozoan parasites in the phylum Apicomplexa. It affects the distal small intestine and can affect the respiratory tract in ...
, a gastrointestinal illness
Gastrointestinal diseases (abbrev. GI diseases or GI illnesses) refer to diseases involving the gastrointestinal tract, namely the oesophagus, stomach, small intestine, large intestine and rectum, and the accessory organs of digestion, the liver, ...
caused by the parasite. After laboratory analysis, 425 cases were confirmed and a total of 1,374 probable cases were considered to have originated from the park. The incident led to the passage of increased regulations regarding sanitation procedures at water parks in New York State.
The Sprayground reopened on August 26, 2006, following an upgrade of its filtration and disinfection facilities which included the incorporation of an ultraviolet unit.''Ithaca Journal'', 2006-08-26
/ref> A $5 million class-action lawsuit
A class action, also known as a class-action lawsuit, class suit, or representative action, is a type of lawsuit where one of the parties is a group of people who are represented collectively by a member or members of that group. The class action ...
brought against New York State was settled in 2014, with damages being awarded to as many as 2,500 victims of the outbreak.
See also
* List of New York state parks
This is a list of state parks in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Also listed are state golf courses, seasonal hunting areas, and ''former'' state parks.
In New York, state parks are managed by the New York State Office of Parks, Re ...
References
External links
New York State Parks: Seneca Lake State Park
State parks of New York (state)
Parks in Seneca County, New York
2005 disease outbreaks
Protected areas established in 1957
1957 establishments in New York (state)
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