New York - How Safe And Clean Are Your Kids' Camps?

New York - For the roughly 400 camps in the Catskills and Hudson Valley, Health Department inspections, turned up hundreds of violations last year, the citations usually were mundane: But there were also extreme examples:
An August 2005 inspection of Camp Bnos Skwere in Fallsburg found that a medical director who was not qualified for invasive procedures was assisting a camper in administering an enema. The camp was also cited for trash strewn throughout the grounds, raw fish improperly stored and an unapproved trip to Lake Superior.

Camp Ohel Elozen Be'er Hatorah in Bethel was cited for operating last year without a valid permit. The camp was also written up for sewage discharging onto the ground, a leaky chlorine pump, and for having two fly strips hanging over work tables in a canteen area.

Health inspectors say almost every camp has at least a handful of violations to address before a permit is issued each summer. "It's very rare, if not impossible, for a camp to get a 100 percent on a pre-operational inspection," said an environmental health aide for the Ulster County Department of Health.
Sullivan County faces the biggest challenge, with more than 170 camps, roughly 100 of them overnight camps. In contrast, Orange and Ulster counties have fewer than 100 camps each.

Supervision also seems to be an issue for camps. New York regulations require camp counselors to maintain visual or verbal contact with campers at all times. Still, camps are repeatedly cited for unsupervised campers, considered a major infraction.
Camp Bais Yaakov in Ferndale was fined after a July 27 inspection discovered several campers unsupervised. A second fine was issued for the same thing a few weeks later.