The Virginia Beach Department of Public Health has issued a
swimming and wading advisory for the Chesapeake Bay from Ocean View Avenue (end
of the 5000 block) to Fort Story, and for the Atlantic Ocean from 8th Street to
the Dam Neck Annex. Recent testing conducted by the Health Department showed
that bacteria levels in the water exceeded the State Water Quality Standards.
Recreational waters are monitored for bacteria using
indicator organisms such as Enterococcus, the indicator of choice in estuarine
and marine waters.
“The coastal waters of Virginia are generally very clean,
and we test them weekly from May through September,” said Heidi Kulberg, M.D.,
Director of the Virginia Beach Department of Public Health. “On the occasions when waters fail to meet
the standards, we need to protect public health by letting residents and
visitors know.”
Signs will be posted on the affected beaches to alert the
public of the swimming and wading advisory.
The signs will read:
WARNING! SWIMMING
ADVISORY
Bacteria levels do not meet state water quality standards
Swimming and wading are prohibited until further notice
Virginia Beach has conducted these tests since the
mid-1970s. Health officials will continue testing the site until the water quality
meets the state water quality standards.
When the sampling test results meet the standards, the signs will be
removed.
Enterococci are a group of organisms used to determine the
extent of the fecal contamination of recreational waters. While they do not
cause illness, scientific studies indicate that their presence is closely
correlated to the presence of other disease-causing organisms. People swimming or playing in waters with
bacteria levels higher than the standard have an increased risk of developing
gastrointestinal illness, as well as skin, eye and respiratory infections.
“We encourage the public to protect their health by
complying with this advisory,” said Kulberg. “Typically an advisory of this
nature is temporary and will be withdrawn once the bacteria levels have
returned to safe levels.”
The results of this and all other sampling are located on
the Virginia Department of Health Web site at http://www.vdh.state.va.us/epidemiology/DEE/BeachMonitoring.
For additional information, contact the Virginia Beach
Department of Public Health at (757) 518-2700.
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