Sewage leak found at Scots beach as swimmers warned to stay away
Locals have been warned against swimming at a Scots beach amid a sewage leak.
Inspectors at Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) found the outbreak Dunbar East Beach and have issued a stern health warning.
After routine testing on Tuesday, July 1, elevated bacterial counts were found sparking a SEPA probe into the matter. Reports of "sewage" in close proximity to the beach bathing water also reached the agency.
A representative for SEPA remarked: "A routine sample taken on 1st July as part of SEPAs bathing water quality monitoring program indicated a high bacterial result at Dunbar East Bathing Water in East Lothian.
"We were also made aware of a report by a member of the public about sewage near the bathing water. This was reported to Scottish Water on the 2nd July."
In light of potential health risks, SEPA is discouraging swimming and paddling at the East Lothian locale and has put up updated signs to inform the public, reports Edinburgh Live.
"We are temporarily advising against bathing and paddling as a precautionary measure while we investigate. Signage has been posted to advise against bathing, which will remain in place until the water quality returns to a satisfactory level. Further water samples will be taken on 7th July.
"SEPA are liaising closely with East Lothian Council and Scottish Water, and we will continue to work together to monitor the situation."
Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community!
Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today.
You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland.
No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team.
All you have to do is click here if you're on mobile, select 'Join Community' and you're in!
If you're on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click 'Join Community'.
We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like.
To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'exit group'.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Record
6 hours ago
- Daily Record
Scots teachers walk through raw sewage as 'human faeces flows down flooded street'
It came a day after SEPA issued a warning for bathers to avoid swimming at the town's beach. Scots schoolteachers were seen to walk through raw sewage after flooding caused raw human faeces to seep down a street, it's been claimed. The incident is said to have taken place in Dunbar, East Lothian. One local has now called for action after she claimed to witness the incident outside a primary school. Images shared with Edinburgh Live appear to show 'faeces' on the street outside the school, at the corner of Lammermuir Crescent and Countess Road, on four separate occasions: June 16, June 22, June 23 and July 2. The resident said: "The ongoing issue of human faeces on the street and outside a school is huge public health emergency. It's disgraceful that this has been allowed to happen and continues to happen. "When the flooding recedes, sewage is left. This has happened four times in the last three weeks. Not everyone walking through it realises that the paper waste is toilet roll and there is human faeces caught up in the sludge. "These drains are directly adjacent to Dunbar Primary John Muir Campus. I have seen teachers attempt to walk through on their way to school. It is clearly a health concern to the community." This comes a day after SEPA issued a warning for bathers to avoid swimming at Dunbar East Beach on Tuesday July 1 after their investigations indicated a high level of bacteria in the water. The public body was also made aware of "sewage" near the bathing water. A Scottish Water spokesperson said: "Our operational teams responded following reports of a suspected waste water leak in Dunbar. " Operatives found that a blocked sewer was causing external flooding on the public footpath. We cleaned the area and carried out a CCTV survey of the sewer. "We are now carrying our further investigations including additional CCTV surveying to confirm whether there are any defects on our pipe which could be contributing to the external flooding in the area. Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community! Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today. You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland. No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team. All you have to do is click here if you're on mobile, select 'Join Community' and you're in! If you're on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click 'Join Community'. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'exit group'. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. "We would like to apologise for any disruption this incident caused, and thank the community for reporting it to us. Customers are encouraged to report suspected pollution as soon as possible. Anyone with anything to report should contact the 24-hour customer helpline on 0800 0778 778. East Lothian Council are understood to have reported the sewage issue to Scottish Water after they were made aware of the issue.
Daily Record
6 hours ago
- Daily Record
Buffer zone law must be upheld as anti-abortion protestors announce new 'vigils'
Record View says groups are entitled to their beliefs but they are not above the law. Women who attend abortion clinics should be free to do so without being harassed by strangers. This is a position the majority of Scots will agree with without a second thought. But sadly, despite the introduction of buffer zones to keep anti-abortion protesters a safe distance away from clinic entrances, there remains a small but vocal minority who wish to confront women in person. Texas-based 40 Days for Life announced online it will hold a series of 'prayer vigils' near the Chalmers Clinic in Edinburgh in September. The activity is expected to last for 40 days and will commence from September 24 with the last 'vigil' to take place on November 2. But the organisation has suggested it will gather across the road from the clinic's entrance - ignoring the 200m buffer zone that is now law. Anti-abortion groups are entitled to their beliefs but they are not above the law. The group has been known to harass women outside healthcare facilities offering abortion services across Scotland in recent years. Repeatedly targeted clinics include those at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital (QEUH), Glasgow Royal Infirmary, Sandyford Clinic, Edinburgh Chalmers Street Clinic and Aberdeen Maternity Hospital. It's up to police to ensure any protest is legal and does not subject women to unwanted harassment. Scotland upholds freedom of expression. But it also upholds the rights of people to attend medical clinicians without being targeted by political campaigners. The law is there, it must be upheld for all our benefit. Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community! Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today. You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland. No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team. All you have to do is click here if you're on mobile, select 'Join Community' and you're in! If you're on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click 'Join Community'. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'exit group'. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. Bussed of British To slow down climate change we need to get more people onto public transport and out of fuel and petrol cars. So if we're going to build an environmentally friendly public transport network, we should be buying as many vehicles from UK manufacturers as possible. Alexander Dennis' two factories in the Falkirk area could be a big part of this. We have already seen how many of their buses have been bought for public use in Manchester. If we need to change the law in order to procure vehicles from our own country, then so be it. We need more high-skilled manufacturing jobs in Scotland, not less. Not only do these benefit the economy as a whole but they also help keep our communities together. Euan Stainbank is right to fight for his constituents and try to keep the jobs in the area. It will be a sad day if the historic firm leaves Scotland.
Daily Record
16 hours ago
- Daily Record
Dad of tragic Scots boy in government help call after selling home amid treatment nightmare
Jamie Tierney, whose son is terminally ill, has sold the family home. The dad of a tragic Scots boy has called for more help for families with terminally ill children - after selling their home while shelling out thousands of pounds on his treatment. Devoted dad Jamie Tierney believes there should be a body set up to help families navigate the difficulties a terminal diagnosis brings, from accessing benefits to help with housing and other issues. The 33-year-old, of Dunfermline, Fife, said he was forced to make his family homeless as it was the best option due to the difficult circumstances they find themselves in. They can put money from the sale of their home towards treatment for their six-year-old son, also Jamie, who suffers from rare muscle wasting disease Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD). Jamie senior said the youngster's condition meant the family home had become unsuitable for him, and they are now staying with different family members as they wait to hear if they will be given a council house. They receive support from the Muscular Dystrophy UK charity, and the NHS, as well as carers' allowance, but have to deal with each organisation individually, and Jamie believes a streamlined service would make it easier for families. Jamie's call for change comes after the family were denied the chance for Jamie junior to get a wonder medication which is provided free to the NHS. The family has headed abroad on a number of occasions for Jamie to receive treatment. Givinostat, a groundbreaking new life-extending treatment which slows the progress of the condition, has been cleared for use in the UK and is being used in England. Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community! Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today. You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland. No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team. All you have to do is click here if you're on mobile, select 'Join Community' and you're in! If you're on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click 'Join Community'. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'exit group'. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. But Scottish health boards have not given the drug to any patients through an early access programme, despite patients south of the border benefitting from it. Jamie, 33, said: "We sold our family home for many reasons — it was a townhouse with too many stairs, completely unsuitable for Jamie. We needed to find a way to give him independence. " Jamie's needs are increasing year by year. Our street is on a hill, and watching the kids play there breaks my heart — knowing Jamie can't join in this summer. "We need to keep money for future treatments and medical needs for Jamie. I think there should be supportive pathways for families who are in this situation and to aid them with options and help as currently we are jumping through hoops. "We were told we were the last family accepted on a clinical trial in the U.S. We were petrified but ready to move for Jamie. It fell through — we were devastated." The family have headed to the United States and Mexico for treatments for Jamie, paid for with the help of fundraising from raffles and GoFundMe pages. The incurable muscle-wasting disease, which gradually weakens all muscles in the body, affects one in 5,000 boys and sees sufferers having a life expectancy of around mid-20s. Jamie added: "As of this Friday, we're technically homeless. We can't buy again — my wife had to give up work to care for Jamie, and I'm in the early stages of building a new business that just about keeps us afloat. "Housing are trying to help, but we're told we just meet the criteria of 'homeless'. Yes, we could rent privately — but a suitable ground-floor property would cost double our old mortgage. "The system isn't built for families in extreme, complex situations and when you don't fit the system the system forgets you. How are families supposed to survive like this? I think there's certainly got to be some sort of help. "If we weren't in this situation my wife and I would both be working. She is no longer working and the stress and worry on your child's health affects your work. I'm in a first year start up struggling to support us. "If we had to go private rent it would financially cripple us. We are self funding Jamie's treatments with fundraising but fundraising has become harder and harder for us. We just feel sorry for other families in this situation. "There's families that are being affected every day. I wouldn't wish this on anyone. We would live on the streets for Jamie to be healthy, but the system doesn't seem to consider us." You can donate to their GoFundMe page here. The Scottish Government said: "We have every sympathy with the Tierney family and the hardships they're facing. We want disabled people and carers to get the support they are entitled to, making sure the application process is as straightforward as it can be. " Child Disability Payment is designed to mitigate some of the additional costs of caring for a disabled child or young person and we have a fast-track application route for people who have a terminal condition. "We have also transformed financial support for unpaid carers in Scotland, in recognition of the impact caring can have on a family's finances. "Local authorities will be provided with £15 billion this financial year for a range of services, including housing options services – an advice process councils use when someone approaches them with a housing problem."
