 __ Whig 20070630 Beach(Updated: 2007.06.30 10:47:50 PM) |
Beach closed due to high E. coli levels
Katherine Laidlaw
Local news - Saturday, June 30, 2007 @ 00:00
Swimmers hoping to cool off at Lake Ontario Park beach this long weekend should look elsewhere.
Kingston, Frontenac, Lennox and Addington (KFLA) Public Health posted a sign at the beach yesterday saying it was closed due to high levels of E.coli in the water.
"At this point our public health inspectors don't know the cause of the high levels of organisms in the water. The only thing they're sure of is that it's not a safe place to swim right now," said Justin Chenier, communications officer for the health department.
Chenier said Lake Ontario Park beach, located on Front Road, is the only Kingston beach that will be closed for the weekend.
"At this point, I'm not aware of any other beaches that are on the radar," he said.
The next round of test results won't be returned to Public Health inspectors until next Tuesday or Wednesday.
The inspectors didn't expect to find a source for the spike in E.coli bacteria in the water.
"We had some beaches that were closed last year because of E.coli. There was never a source found," he said. "It could be a boat with a leak in it. Usually it's attributed to geese and geese droppings."
Public Health inspectors closed the beach to swimmers after conducting 10 water sample tests over the past two weeks. Chenier said the highest results that came back from the beach's water were three times the maximum level for safe swimming. He's warning beach-goers against entering the water.
"You run the risk of getting sick from consuming water that's contaminated with E.coli," he said. "It's not our water supply that's contaminated."
The beach will reopen when test results come back consistently safe, Chenier said.
Last year, KFL&A Public Health replaced their older, smaller warning signs with 18- x 24-inch signs containing warning messages and a symbol of a swimmer with a red cross through it.
"They're extremely more effective than the old signs. We clarified the language and we removed wording that said 'swimming isn't recommended,' " he said. "There shouldn't be any confusion as to what the sign means."
He said the health unit can't physically make sure people aren't swimming, but he hopes residents will do their swimming at another city beach.
"People can still swim there, but we're advising them not to," he said. "It's swimming at your own risk."
Other area beaches and those at Sandbanks Provincial Park in Picton are open for the long weekend.