Water quality sampling on March 6th by the Florida Department of Health found unacceptably high levels (>70.5 cells per 100ml of water) of Enterococcus bacteria at four Hillsborough County Beaches, causing advisories to be issued and the beaches rated "Poor" for bacteria.

• Bahia Beach
• Cypress Point Park North
• Davis Island Beach
• Simmons Park Beach

A “Poor” rating may result in a resampling event to confirm poor conditions, otherwise a Health Advisory or Warning will be issued immediately. These indicate that contact with the water at this site may pose increased risk of infectious disease, particularly for susceptible individuals.

In addition, the beach at Picnic Island North was given a "Moderate" rating, which indicates the presence of between 35.5 and 75.4 cells per 100ml of water. No advisory was issued.

All the beaches will be resampled within the next two weeks to determine if the advisories should be lifted. 

For updates, visit the Florida Dept. of Health's Florida Healthy Beaches website.