Red Tide

Heavier concentrations were found this past week at several beaches in Pinellas, Manatee and Sarasota counties. Respiratory irritation was also reported over the past week in Sarasota County.

Low concentrations of the toxin were detected this past week at New Pass Dock in Sarasota Bay, on the north end of Lido Key.

The organism that causes red tide was detected in 49 samples along the coast of Southwest Florida. But bloom-level concentrations were present in just nine samples.

This is the first confirmed report of red tide since last year. A plume had been spotted by satellite photo during the past week.

Residents along the beach communities, especially those cleaning out their homes and businesses from Hurricane Helene, may experience respiratory irritation when concentrations are higher.

The Florida Department of Health in Lee County canceled five health warnings due to harmful algal blooms in the Caloosahatchee River

“If we see that these two effluent sources can stimulate growth in Karenia brevis, then we can potentially target these nutrients and prevent them from entering bloom impacted waters," said Amanda Muni-Morgan of UF.

Hurricane Ian’s landfall on Sept. 28 last year helped foster a red-tide-a-thon that lasted eight months. Now there have been seven blue-green algae health advisories in Lee County alone since May

Blooms have already formed in Lake Okeechobee this spring and things are shaping up for a repeat of 2018 in the Caloosahatchee River this summer after Hurricane Ian set in motion the same events as Irma.

There has still been a profound increase in sargassum in the Atlantic, and thus Florida’s beaches, compared to the early years of the USF study.