NAPLES, Fla. — It is safe to swim again at the beach in Naples.
Dozens of people were back in the water on Friday after Florida health officials lifted the advisories at three Naples beaches that were showing high levels of bacteria.
Earlier this week, the Florida Department of Health tested and detected higher-than-normal levels of Enterococci bacteria near the Naples Pier, Lowdermilk Beach, and Doctors Pass.
Enterococci is a common fecal bacteria found in nature. However, when it exceeds certain levels, it becomes toxic and unsafe for people.
"Come Monday, we hope the waters are back to something we can operate at," said Camronn Weiny, who runs a summer camp that was cut short by the advisory.
With several other beaches in neighboring Lee County also under recent advisories, Weiny said it's the most advisories he's ever seen in his 19 years of hosting the local summer camp for kids.
"It’s coming up more and more," Weiny said. "Before this, we hadn’t seen it as often."
All of this as parts of Southwest Florida have experienced sweltering heat in recent weeks. It has raised concerns about the climate's impact on the bacteria levels.
"There are differences of opinion," said Dr. Donald Duke, a professor at the Florida Gulf Coast University Water School. "Some of my colleagues would say it's absolutely proven that they multiply in the environment. Other studies say maybe not," he explained.
Duke confirmed that higher temperatures create better conditions for bacteria like Enterococci to survive. However, he explained that the detection of higher-than-normal levels of Enterococci bacteria is not unusual at all.
"There is no question that higher temperatures help these bacteria survive in the environment," Duke stated. "The closer it gets to human gut conditions, 98.6 degrees, the longer they're going to live," he said.
He added, "If disease-carrying organisms live an extra day or so, that's a problem."
