Chaos on popular Canary Island beach as tourists banned from swimming in the sea
A beach in Lanzarote has been closed to swimmers over fears they could fall ill.
Official carried out tests on the water quality off the shore of Playa Dorada in the resort town of Playa Blanca. They discovered that the water had microbiological contamination, leading the public health body to make a health alert and shut the beach on Tuesday.
Water samples taken on Monday showed signs of pollution, prompting Yaiza Town Council to impose a temporary ban on bathing, Canarian Weekly reported. Further investigations will now be carried out in a bid to work out the cause of the contamination.
La Voz reported that the contaminant was Escherichia coli, also known as E. coli, and streptococcus bacteria. E. coli bacteria are most commonly present in the intestines of animals and humans, while streptococcus can cause various infections in humans.
Yaiza recommends residents and tourists enjoy other beaches, such as those located in the Los Ajaches Natural Monument, known as Papagayo Beach; Playa Flamingo; or even the small beach in Playa Blanca.
The beach will only reopen once tests confirm the water is safe for swimming.
Playa Dorada is far from the only beach in Spain that has had issues with water contamination in recent weeks.
Last month, sunseekers were left horrified when dozens of dead rats ended up floating in the sea. Following a heavy downpour, the bloated rodents began to bob off a beach in Spain's Costa Blanca. The overburdened local sewage system has been blamed for the disgusting scenes facing beachgoers near Alicante's Coco and Urbanova beaches.
Rats were pictured lying dead on the sand at Urbanova beach, three miles south of Alicante City Centre. Others were filmed floating lifeless in the water. Dead rats were also spotted near the sailing school at Alicante's Real Club de Regatas.
The ugly scenes provoked the anger of an opposition councillor for the popular holiday resort, who worries that mixing tourists and dead rats is not a good idea. Trini Amoros, deputy spokesperson for Alicante City Council's socialist group, said: 'Alicante cannot allow rats floating off our beaches.'
Council officials quickly raised a yellow flag as a warning to sunbathers as the large brown blotch spread across the water. The bizarre incident occurred around midday at a stretch of beach in Benalmadena, near two hotels - the Globales Los Patos Park Hotel and Hotel Spa Benalmadena Palace.
Council chiefs said that the yellow warning flags had been raised when the sea started turning brown, attributing the discolouration to a broken water pipe and assuring the public that there was no danger to public health.
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