Saying the water in the Ferriday pool is safe is a bit like saying the Titanic had a great engine or that the flood waters from Hurricane Katrina were not that bad. That’s called missing the bigger picture.

And in the case of the Ferriday pool that picture is a little scary, a good bit troubling and downright disgusting.

In case you’ve missed the controversy, Ferriday Mayor Gene Allen reopened the pool this summer against the wishes of the Concordia Recreation District No. 1 board’s wishes. District officials say the pool is badly in need of repairs, costly repairs, and should not have been opened.

Allen points to the pool’s good water test results. But the glare of the blue water has blinded him to the scary realities all around the pool.

From standing water in the dressing rooms to disorganized chemicals tossed into a storage closet to unusable toilet facilities, the pool, as an expert said Wednesday, should have never been opened.

Everyone wants a public pool.

Ferriday needs a public pool.

But it needs a safe, public pool, not one that puts the safety of children on the line.

Ferriday’s youth deserve much, much better than “safe water” and an unsafe environment steps away from the water.

As unfortunate as it will be to keep the youth from enjoying the pool, it would be far more unfortunate if one of them was injured or became ill due to the shoddy shape of the pool’s surroundings. The pool needs to be shut down permanently until it can either be repaired or replaced.

Clear water is only part of the issue. Having a clear conscience in knowing that the youth are not at unnecessary risk is of far greater importance.