A popular swimming hole in Fredericktown, often referred to as “The Offsets,” will not be opening this Memorial Day weekend as many campers in southeast Missouri had hoped.
Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt announced today that a judge has ordered the lead mine turned swimming hole to cease operations until safety measures have been implemented. The order follows two deaths at the facility in July of last year, and according to a press release by Schmitt’s office, at least nine people have died by "drowning or falling off the bluffs" since the Offsets opened in the 1980’s.
“It was incredibly important to me to ensure that swimmers were kept off the water at The Offsets for Memorial Day until proper safety measures are implemented,” said Schmitt in the release. “As Attorney General, my duty is to protect all six million Missourians, and ensuring that people can safely enjoy summer festivities falls under that duty. It’s my hope that The Offsets will implement the necessary safety features and ensure that their patrons are able to safely enjoy themselves.”
In a Facebook post, the Offsets claimed that the move is “government overreach,” and that the court is holding them “to a higher standard than government run facilities.” They also started a GoFundMe page to manage lawyer expenses.
In 2018, former Attorney General Josh Hawley filed a lawsuit against the facility seeking to “compel the entity to remedy the dangerous conditions their property poses to swimmers and patrons.”
In a final judgement released today, Circuit Judge Wendy Horn bars Gary and Rebecca Henson, the owners of The Offsets, from re-opening until safety measures are met, which include having an emergency response plan, holding frequent staff trainings, requiring an additional lifeguard to be stationed in a boat in the water to be more readily available to rescue swimmers, and requiring all patrons who are jumping into the water to wear U.S. Coast Guard-approved life vests.