Las Vegas Athletic Club resuming 24/7 pool access after court decision

Following a recent court decision from Clark County, Las Vegas Athletic Club is resuming 24-hour access to its aquatic facilities without lifeguards.

Starting Monday, members of LVAC will be able to access aquatic facilities 24 hours a day, seven days a week, said the gym in an email announcement to members on Tuesday. This comes after a judge ruled in favor of the athletic club saying the company doesn’t have to have lifeguards for its pools following a drowning at one of its locations last year.

Instead of lifeguards, the pools will be monitored via surveillance camera, and no solo swimming will be allowed, according to LVAC. Since October, LVAC’s aquatic facilities have been operating with reduced hours, with lifeguards on duty.

“As many of our members are aware, over the last several months, LVAC took the necessary legal steps to challenge recent interpretations of Nevada law,” said the gym in a statement. “The interpretations required LVAC to hire lifeguards in the aquatic areas, resulting in a reduced schedule for members to enjoy the aquatic facilities.”

Previously, LVAC was granted a waiver by Southern Nevada Health District in 2020 to monitor lap pools electronically, along with other gyms in the valley. The waiver was revoked by SNHD in June after the death of 58-year-old Leticia Triplett, who drowned at LVAC’s North Decatur location in February 2024. LVAC lawyers contended Triplett’s cause of death was a heart attack.

This resulted in LVAC suing SNHD over the decision to revoke the waiver, asking a judge to allow it to continue to operate its pools and for compensatory damages to be paid due to SNHD’s actions. LVAC officials have said it would cost close to $4 million per year to hire enough lifeguards for its pools, arguing that lifeguard labor costs would ultimately lead to a “shut down” of the company.

In a decision filed in February, District Court Judge Timothy Williams said the Southern Nevada Health District “acted arbitrarily and capriciously” when it determined last year that LVAC pools are public and not exempt from the state law that mandates such pools are staffed with lifeguards.

Contact Emerson Drewes at edrewes@reviewjournal.com. Follow @EmersonDrewes on X. Review-Journal reporter Bryan Horwath contributed to this report.