{"id":291528,"date":"2026-07-09T16:56:13","date_gmt":"2026-07-09T16:56:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/291528\/"},"modified":"2026-07-09T16:56:13","modified_gmt":"2026-07-09T16:56:13","slug":"over-a-dozen-nyc-beaches-under-swimming-advisory-due-to-high-bacteria-levels","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/291528\/","title":{"rendered":"Over a dozen NYC beaches under swimming advisory due to high bacteria levels"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Surfrider Foundation released its list of the top most bacteria-polluted beaches in America during 2023.<\/p>\n

NEW YORK CITY – Over a dozen New York City<\/a> beaches have been put under a swimming advisory due to high levels of bacteria following days of heavy rain that slammed the city.<\/p>\n

\"NEW <\/p>\n

NEW YORK CITY – JUNE 29: People cool off at Coney Island beach on June 29, 2026 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City.\u00a0<\/p>\n

((Photo by Spencer Platt\/Getty Images) \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Of the 18 locations currently under advisory, a few are popular summer <\/a>hotspots, including Coney Island, South Beach, and Midland Beach.<\/p>\n

These beaches all exceeded the maximum safety threshold for enterococci\u2014a type of bacteria found in human and animal waste that indicates poor water quality.<\/p>\n

HEALTH ADVISORIES ISSUED FOR POPULAR FLORIDA GULF COAST BEACHES DUE TO FECAL BACTERIA IN WATER<\/a><\/p>\n

Recently, much of the Northeast<\/a> has been pounded by torrential downpours, causing severe flooding.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\" <\/p>\n

next<\/p>\n

\n Flash flooding swamps Farmingdale, New York, on Monday, July 6.
\n (FOX Weather)<\/p>\n

\"DEAL, <\/p>\n

prevnext<\/p>\n

\n DEAL, NEW JERSEY, US – JULY 6: A view of flooded streets after heavy rain in Deal, New Jersey, on Monday, July 6, 2026.\u00a0
\n ((Photo by Lokman Vural Elibol\/Anadolu via Getty Images))<\/p>\n

\"DEAL, <\/p>\n

prev<\/p>\n

\n DEAL, NEW JERSEY, US – JULY 6: A view of flooded streets after heavy rain in Deal, New Jersey, on Monday, July 6, 2026.\u00a0
\n ((Photo by Lokman Vural Elibol\/Anadolu via Getty Images))<\/p>\n

It is not uncommon for bacteria<\/a> levels to rise after heavy rain<\/a> events, which lead to increased stormwater runoff. “High levels of rainfall are associated with higher levels of bacteria,” according to the NYC Health Department.<\/p>\n

WHAT IS THE FECAL BACTERIA ENTEROCOCCI AND WHY DOES IT IMPACT BEACHES?<\/a><\/p>\n

To track this, the New York State Department of Health requires susceptible coastal beaches<\/a> to be sampled at least weekly for enterococci.\u00a0<\/p>\n

BEACH NIGHTMARE: 2 DOZEN BEACHES IN MASSACHUSETTS CLOSE THIS WEEKEND DUE TO HIGH AMOUNTS OF FECAL BACTERIA<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Scanning <\/p>\n

Scanning electron micrograph of enterococci.\u00a0<\/p>\n

(Lisac Mark, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service \/ FOX Weather)<\/p>\n

These bacteria live in the digestive tracts of humans and animals, making them a clear indicator of fecal pollution. While small amounts occur naturally in soil and plants, high levels typically stem from stormwater runoff, pet or wildlife<\/a> waste, leaking septics, or sewage leaks.<\/p>\n

MAJOR CITIES ALONG I-95 CORRIDOR FACE INCREASED RISK OF URBAN FLOODING AS STORMS REIGNITE OVER MID-ATLANTIC<\/a><\/p>\n

While enterococci bacteria themselves usually do not cause illness, their presence acts as a warning sign that more dangerous viruses or bacteria could be lurking in the water.<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"NEW <\/p>\n

FILE – NEW YORK, NEW YORK – JULY 30: People try to stay cool at the beach at Coney Island in Brooklyn as the region experiences another heatwave on July 30, 2025 in New York City.\u00a0<\/p>\n

((Photo by Spencer Platt\/Getty Images) \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Swimmers who enter contaminated waters risk developing skin, eye, ear, and respiratory infections, as well as severe stomach illnesses, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.<\/p>\n

REPORTS: BEACHGOER BITTEN BY SHARK AT JONES BEACH ON LONG ISLAND<\/a><\/p>\n

The New York State Sanitary Code sets a maximum allowable threshold for acceptable amounts of enterococci at 104 colonies per 100 milliliters for a single water sample.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"\/ <\/p>\n

The beach is closed. The sign reads “Notice: this beach area may not be suitable for swimming due to high levels of bacteria”.<\/p>\n

(ErikaMitchell \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n

When sampled on July 6, the water at Coney Island came in at 227\u2014which is more than double the maximum health standard.<\/p>\n

HOW TO WATCH FOX WEATHER<\/a><\/p>\n

Even more jarring, both Midland Beach and South Beach measured enterococci counts in the thousands.<\/p>\n

For a full list of the beaches currently under advisory, visit the official NYC Health Department Beach Water Quality Map<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Surfrider Foundation released its list of the top most bacteria-polluted beaches in America during 2023. NEW YORK…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":291529,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[7631,21392,2953,232,9,24,55,54,8386,56,12561,2577,38018,1986,61208,11304],"class_list":["post-291528","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-new-york-city","tag-beaches","tag-fox-weather","tag-health","tag-lifestyle","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-new-york-city-headlines","tag-new-york-city-news","tag-northeast","tag-ny","tag-ocean","tag-outdoors","tag-recreation","tag-safety","tag-stay22","tag-summer"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/291528","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=291528"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/291528\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/291529"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=291528"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=291528"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=291528"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}