13 NJ beaches test high for fecal bacteria for week of Aug. 23

UPDATE, Thursday, Aug. 26: 5 of these beaches are now closed to swimming

Heavy rain from Tropical Storm Henri has helped put 13 beaches in Monmouth and Ocean Counties on advisory after testing high for fecal bacteria on Monday.

The DEP tests 215 ocean, bay and fresh water beaches at least once a week. The beaches in Monmouth and Ocean County tested on Monday had results above the minimum of 104 colonies of Enterococci bacteria per 100 milliliters of sample.

One of the beaches tested at over five times the minimum and one was six times.

Results from a second test on Tuesday will determine if the beaches will be closed to swimming after two high tests.

"Henri dumped an incredible 7+ inches of rain over parts of the Jersey Shore last weekend. All that rain and all that flood water had to go somewhere, eventually finding its way back to the sea. So it's no wonder that we still have significant runoff issues here," New Jersey 101.5 Chief Meteorologist Dan Zarrow said.

The beaches under advisory:

Monmouth County

Asbury Park — 1st Ave (150 cfu)
Loch Arbour Village — Village Beach Club (230 cfu)
Long Branch — South Bath (350 cfu)
Long Branch — North Bath (120 cfu)

Ocean County

Barnegat Light Borough — 25th Street (150 cfu)
Beachwood — Beachwood Beach West (590 cfu)
Lavallette — Reese Ave (210 cfu)
Long Beach Township — New Jersey (130 cfu)
Pine Beach — East Beach Station Ave (250 cfu)
Point Pleasant Borough — Maxon (360 cfu)
Point Pleasant Borough — River (510 cfu)
Seaside Heights — Hancock (150 cfu)
Seaside Park — 5th Ave (600 cfu)

Swimming water that exceeds the acceptable level of bacteria could cause gastrointestinal and respiratory problems for swimmers.

Contact with the water, according to DEP, can result in any one or more of the following symptoms:

Nausea
Vomiting
Diarrhea
Abdominal pain
Sore throat
Cough
Runny nose/sneezing
Skin rash and itching
Ear and eye irritation
Fever and chills
Most of the time, these symptoms are minor but they can occasionally be more serious, especially in children and the elderly.

Contact reporter Dan Alexander at Dan.Alexander@townsquaremedia.com or via Twitter @DanAlexanderNJ

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Filed Under: Monmouth County, Ocean County

Categories: New Jersey News