Toxic red tide algae have appeared across the southwest coast of Florida, afflicting residents of seven counties with multiple health issues.
In areas of high concentration, residents are being affected by symptoms including burning eyes and respiratory issues, according to the Tampa Bay Times. Jemima Douge, a healthcare education specialist at the Florida Poison Information Center in Tampa, told the outlet that Florida’s Poison Control Centers have admitted 36 people for red tide exposure this year alone.
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The latest bloom, defined as 100,000 red tide-forming cells for every liter of water, started in October but has since spread all across the state’s southwest coast. Authorities fear it could persist for some time.
Marybeth Dunn, president of the Indian Rocks Beach Homeowners Association, announced the cancellation of a local beach festival scheduled for April 15 over fears that the bloom will persist.
“It’s so early in the year — red tide is going to be hanging on for a while, and it’s more than likely going to get worse as time goes on,” Dunn told the outlet. “This is a fairly big event. We had vendors, sponsors, and events lined up. So we wanted to give them an opportunity to get other gigs.”
“I cannot say when it’s going to go away,” Bob Weisberg, former director of the University of South Florida’s Ocean Circulation Lab, echoed. “We really can’t project what’s going to happen two months from now ― but we have to pay attention to what’s going on now.”
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The bloom has also wrought havoc on the area’s wildlife. Mandy Edmunds, a parks supervisor with St. Pete Beach, said that approximately 1,000 pounds of dead fish have been cleared from the beaches around Tampa Bay in March alone. Aside from the dead fish, local wildlife experts have counted 104 sea turtles believed to have been killed by the algae, along with seven manatees.
There is currently no known way to prevent red tide algae blooms, according to the University of Central Florida, though scientists are currently studying different methods. One developing method is to pour a clay mixture on top of it to sink it to the ocean floor, although researchers are currently looking for any negative side effects before testing it on a wider scale.
