The Davis Family YMCA in Boardman has shut down all of its pools for several days after concerns over a possible case of Cryptosporidium. 

According to officials from the YMCA, an alert was sent out over the YMCA's app Sunday evening to notify members that the pools would be closed for testing. 

The YMCA says that the parent of a summer camp attendee believed their child may have been displaying symptoms of Cryptosporidium and notified the YMCA. 

As a precaution, the pools at the Davis Family Center were shut down. 

Officials say they contacted the Mahoning County Board of Health Monday morning for guidance. 

According to Ryan Tekac, the Environmental Director for the Board of Health, the YMCA was advised that a precautionary "super chlorination" could be done. 

The Mahoning County Board of Health said there had been no confirmed cases of Cryptosporidium at this time; however, the YMCA chose to act out of an abundance of caution and perform the "super chlorination," 

"There's been no evidence that we necessarily have any kind of infection," said Tom Grantonic, the Executive Director of the Davis Family YMCA. "But to make sure that our members stay safe, and other folks that use the pools stay safe, we are doing a super-chlorination. Which means we raise the chlorination level to a super high level, it's not even safe for people to be in, in order to kill the parasite, if it was indeed present. We'll keep it there for a period of time, and then there's a process to bring it back down to safe levels for people to swim in," Grantonic said. 

While there's no confirmed case of Cryptosporidium, Grantonic said the YMCA felt there was a responsibility to take precautions. 

"The members depend on us to maintain a clean environment, safe water for them to swim in, for their families, and we have that responsibility, and we don't take it lightly," said Grantonic. 

He's hopeful that the pools could reopen by Wednesday. 

Tekac said that Cryptosporidium can be difficult to detect. 

"Cryptosporidium is a parasite, and it is tolerant to chlorine. So even though that you're keeping sanitary levels within your pool, it does have the chance to survive inside a pool that does have safe levels of chlorine," he said. 

The Centers for Disease Control says that Cryptosporidium is a microscopic parasite that can survive outside of the body for several days, even in a chlorinated pool. 

"So if there is a fecal accident, or if we do have confirmed Cryptosporidium inside a pool, there is a hyperchlorination or super-chlorination that has to be done, and that's done to be able to kill that parasite," Tekac said. 

While a typical swimming pool is kept at a free chlorine concentration of one part per million, for several hours, the pools at the Davis Family YMCA will have to be held at a concentration of 20 parts per million to kill off any parasites that could potentially be in the water. 

According to the CDC, drinking water and recreational water is how Crypto is typically spread. However, it can be caught in a variety of ways. 

Symptoms of Cryptosporidiosis can take anywhere from two to ten days to show up and could last for up to four weeks in healthy individuals. 

Some symptoms of Cryptosporidiosis are:

Symptoms usually last about one to two weeks (with a range of a few days to four or more weeks) in persons with healthy immune systems. Occasionally, people may experience a recurrence of symptoms after a brief period of recovery before the illness ends. Symptoms can come and go for up to 30 days.

The CDC says that most people who have healthy immune systems will recover without treatment. Diarrhea can be managed by drinking plenty of fluids to prevent dehydration. 

Tekac says it's important that everyone take part in healthy swimming behaviors to keep area pools clean. 

"You want to make sure that if your sick or if your child is sick to not go into the pool, especially if you have diarrhea. So the CDC recommends that after you have watery diarrhea to stay out of the pool for at least two weeks," he explained. 

Tekac also says that it's not just public pools. Any body of water can contain Cryptosporidium, which is why it's crucial that everyone takes precautions to protect the health of the water. 

The CDC says swimmers should also take the following steps: 

Keep the pee, poop, sweat, and dirt out of the water!
Stay out of the water if you have diarrhea.
Shower before you get in the water.
Don’t pee or poop in the water.
Don’t swallow the water.

Every hour—everyone out!
Take kids on bathroom breaks.
Check diapers, and change them in a bathroom or diaper-changing area–not poolside–to keep germs away from the pool.
Reapply sunscreen.
Drink plenty of fluids.

A full statement from the YMCA Cheif Executive Officer Thomas Gacse reads: 

• At the Davis Family YMCA, the safety and well-being of our members, staff and volunteers always has been and always will be a top priority.
• A parent of one of our Davis Y camp participants recently informed us that her child has been sickened by Cryptosporidium or the “Crypto” parasite.
• Upon learning of this, we immediately closed all of the Davis Family YMCA pools and contacted the Mahoning County Board of Health.
• While there is no test to determine if the water in our pools has this parasite, out of an abundance of caution, we are treating the water to ensure it is safe.
• As of this statement, no other campers, members or staff have reported being sickened by the parasite. Furthermore, the Board of Health advised that there have been no confirmed cases of “crypto” reported by doctors or health facilities in Mahoning County.
• We will continue to work with the Board of Health to determine what other actions, if any, should be taken.
• We will notify members when the treatment of our pools has been completed and they are reopened. Best case scenario is that the pools will reopen mid-week.

The CDC recommends that anyone who believes they may have 'Crypto' should visit their primary healthcare provider for testing. For more information on Cryptosporidium, click here.