Many county swimming areas probably unsafe for weekend

With heavy rains on Thursday and Friday through most of the county, the health department’s standard “pre-emptive advisory” would seem to be in effect for the weekend:

“After rainfall of 1/2 inch or more, all Anne Arundel County beaches are under a no swimming/no direct water contact advisory for at least 48 hours due to predicted elevated bacteria levels from rainwater runoff and increased health risks.”

More than 1/2 inch of rain fell on many parts of the county Thursday and heavy rains continued Friday.  The health department didn’t explicitly issue its advisory, but it’s likely many or most areas received more than ½ inch Friday. To be sure, you can check precipitation records here for your area.

For those with a need to know, here are the swimming areas that tested unsafe for bacteria levels earlier in the week. Just remember, with Friday’s rain, it’s likely many or most public and private swimming areas will have unsafe bacteria levels tomorrow and into Sunday. So don’t limit your caution to these beaches.

CHESAPEAKE BAY

Oyster Harbor – 185*

SEVERN

Carrollton Manor at Hillbottom Beach - 146

MAGOTHY

Cape St. Claire at Lake Claire - 133*

SOUTH

Loch Haven Beach – 196*

Londontowne at Midland 4 – 950*

Londontowne Beach 5 - 236

Turkey Point at Selby Bay – 142*

Pine Whiff – 320

South River Park – 880

RHODE

Holly Hills – 470

WEST

West River Center at Methodist Summer Camp – 172

* Represents tests by county health department

Enterococci counts are expressed as cfu or colony-forming units.  Greater than 104 cfu/100 ml are considered elevated bacteria levels.

Enterococci are bacteria that are found in the GI tract of warm-blooded animals, which includes all birds and mammals.  Their presence in surface water indicates recent contamination with fecal waste.       

Both the county health department and a network of volunteers test over 100 public beaches and other areas around the county for bacteria. The results from the county tests are put online here, and for the volunteer tests here for Severn and Magothy rivers, here for South River, and here for Rhode/West River.  All the sites listed above were tested by Watershed Stewards.

Rain washes human and animal waste from the landscape. For that reason, county and state officials warn residents not to swim or come into contact with water for 48 hours after a significant rain.

Bacteria that is ingested can cause an upset stomach. In some cases more harmful bacteria coming into contact with open wounds can cause serious infection.

Have fun, stay safe