Temporary notices not to swim issued for two Dublin beaches due to E. coli bacteria

To reduce the risk of illness, beach users are urged to take some precautions.

Temporary advisory notices not to swim have been issued for the Claremont and Malahide beaches in north Dublin following routine testing detecting E. coli bacteria in their waters. Fingal County Council issued the notices on Wednesday, which are based on "early bathing water e.coli results" for samples taken on Tuesday. "Preliminary e.coli results 1616 MPN/100ml for Claremont. Preliminary e.coli results 1112 MPN/100ml for Malahide. We await full results including enterococci due tomorrow from samples taken on 17/8/21," it reads. The likely cause for the E. coli on both beaches is listed as: "Impacts from animals/birds and contamination of urban surface water." The notices are expected to be in place for 72 hours. Fingal County Council state that to reduce the risk of illness, beach users should take the following precautions:

• Avoid swallowing or splashing water
• Wash your hands before handling food
• Avoid swimming with an open cut or wound
• Avoid swimming if you are pregnant or have a weakened immune system

Resamples are scheduled to be taken for the Claremont and Malahide beaches on Thursday, with results due on Saturday. The beaches remain open but users are asked to respect the advisory 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. They can also check the notice board at the entrance to each beach. To read the notices, visit Fingal County Council's website here. https://twitter.com/Fingalcoco/status/1428091018491092993