The Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) issued swimming safety warnings for four state beaches on Friday, May 29. Their advice for the Iowa residents came at a time when the weather is starting to warm up, and June is firmly on the horizon.

In a news report from the KCRG website, it was stated that the Iowa DNR oversaw tests on multiple state beaches. It led to four of them failing the safety standards for either E. coli or toxic algae.

Three of the state’s beaches under the Iowa DNR exceeded the single-sample limit for E. coli when the test results came. It included names like Bobwhite State Park in Allerton, Wayne County, Beeds Lake Beach in Hampton, Franklin County, and Pine Lake South Beach in Eldora, Hardin County.

Meanwhile, the Lake Darling Beach was also recommended to be off limits to the Iowa residents for swimming due to testing for toxic algae beyond the level for action.

At the same time, the Iowa DNR gave the all clear to the residents to use the Backbone Beach in Delaware County, according to the KCRG report. It was not available for swimming due to exceeding the E. coli single-sample limit in previous water testing a couple of days ago.

Apart from that, they also put a stop to testing the Lake Keomah and Blue Lake beaches because of their lower water levels currently.

Names of county and city beaches in Iowa exceeding the E. coli single-sample limit

Two county and city beaches in Iowa exceeded the single-sample E. coli limit after testing results came on Friday. They were named Treman Park Beach in Manson, Calhoun County, and Lake Iowa Park Beach in Ladora, Iowa County.

Although it is important to remember that the weekly tests aren’t a given at all of the county and city beaches.

Moreover, the Iowa DNR detailed how going for a swim in water contaminated with E. coli can increase the risk of certain diseases. They warned against suffering from diarrhea, a gastrointestinal disease caused by polluted water.

The infections are relatively common, especially in the ear, skin, and respiratory systems, if someone gets in touch with contaminated water.

Also, the Iowa DNR pointed out that avoiding lake beds during the swimming season is a wise choice. People tend to get stuck easily there despite the fact that the lake beds look dry.

All in all, the residents of Iowa must come together to help each other get through the swimming safety warnings until the situation improves on the state beaches.

Did the warning from the Iowa DNR hamper any of your swimming outing plans?

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Written by

Arjun Sharma

Edited by

Souvik Roy