Temporary Do Not Swim notices for Balbriggan and Rush beaches

Fingal County Council have issued two Do Not Swim notices for Front Strand beach in Balbriggan and Rush South Beach due to an increase in bacteria levels. 

The local authority issued notices yesterday after samples taken on Monday showed high levels of bacteria present in the bathing water.

It is likely this bacteria is caused by urban and agricultural run-off.

A resample was taken for Balbriggan Front Strand yesterday given early warning high E.Coli levels, with results due on Friday.

Resamples scheduled for Rush South and Portrane today with results due on Saturday.

All other identified bathing waters met the standard for “excellent” quality, says the council.

The non-identified bathing water at Malahide Beach (constant red flag) met with “excellent” status also.

Front Strand Balbriggan and Rush South Beach remain open but beach users are asked to respect the Do Not Swim notices as they have been put in place to ensure that the health of bathers is not compromised.

Members of the public can check for water quality at any of the monitored bathing waters in Ireland in advance by accessing the EPA website at www.beaches.ie or by checking the notice board at the entrance to each beach.