SABINE PASS, Texas — A beach advisory issued last week has been updated for multiple beaches in Southeast Texas.
The advisory was issued by Lamar University.
The warning sites are at McFaddin National Wildlife Refuge #1,2,3 and 6 and for Sea Rim Middle and West beaches located on 5632 Clam Lake Road.
The additional advisories are for McFaddin and Sea Rim , located west of Sabine Pass, except at the state park.
Water samples collected at the locations on July 25, 2023 were found to have elevated levels of the Enterococcus bacteria, according to the advisory.
Enterococcus bacteria live in the intestinal tracts of warm-blooded animals, including humans, and therefore indicate possible contamination of streams and rivers by fecal waste, according to the United States Environmental Agency website.
Other potential health effects can include diseases of the skin, eyes, ears and respiratory tract. Eating fish or shellfish harvested from waters with fecal contamination can also result in human illness, according to Ashwini Kucknoor, Lamar University professor of biology.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency considers anything over 104 colonies to be unsafe.
Enterococci levels at designated saltwater, coastal beaches should not exceed 104 per 100 milliliter (mL) in any one sample, or exceed a three-sample geometric mean average over a 60-day period of 35/100 mL.
Lamar University continues to test and monitor this water and based upon their results, further advisories will be issued as necessary.
This is a developing story. We will update with more if and when we receive more confirmed information.