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A Port Colborne, Ont., mother says her family feels terrorized after her backyard pool was contaminated with poisonous chemicals last month.

Niagara Regional Police were called to investigate after Linda Niece’s husband went outside to find that their above-ground backyard pool contained a chemical later identified by environmental experts as a permanent blue dye.

“He sees all the powder,” Niece told Global News in her yard while fighting back tears.

“He was shocked. He was in disbelief. He was terrified because, what is this? It was everywhere.

“It’s terrifying that somebody would dump a chemical into a pool.”

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The chemical, which experts said is not available for retail purchase, left the pool a permanent blue.

After contacting police and reaching her insurance company, Niece had the responsibility of having the water removed. It was pumped out by professionals who painstakingly disposed of it like hazardous waste at a cost of more than $15,000.

The pool, pump and accessories will be replaced because the insurance company has determined it will be less expensive than attempting to carry out repairs.

Niece said she wonders what would have happened if someone in her family had entered the pool and not seen the dye.

“We enjoy night swimming at night as well, so who knows how it would’ve affected us?” she said.

Asked if she could have been targeted, Niece said she wonders the same thing. She has been involved in a neighbourhood campaign dealing with homeowner rights to access municipal drainage in backyards. But Niece said she is not aware of any evidence that would support that theory.

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Since the incident, she and her husband have installed security cameras in the backyard in case the vandals return.

“Who would do this. It’s awful,” Niece said, cautioning other homeowners about the possibility their pools could also be ‘poisoned’ in a dangerous way.