Health Warning issued for Tauranga Harbour

With the heavy rain in the Tauranga urban area overnight there have been several reports of surface flooding and sewage overflow events with spillage into the harbour. Medical Officer of Health, Dr Neil de Wet, says that, “As a health precaution, it is advised that people should avoid swimming and other watersports and activities that involve contact with harbour water.”

Toi Te Ora – Public Health routinely recommends that people should avoid swimming in rivers, streams and harbour areas for 48 hours after heavy rainfall events. With the number of reported sewage overflow events in the Tauranga urban area bacterial levels in the harbour may take a little longer to return to safe levels. “We will be monitoring the situation, but at this stage I would advise against swimming in the harbour at least until after the long weekend or until the water sampling results show that the water is safe to swim in.”

Contact with contaminated water may cause gastrointestinal illnesses, skin infections, eye and ear infections and sometimes chest infections.

Shellfish tend to accumulate viruses and bacteria and may remain contaminated for up to three months and so it not advisable to collect shellfish from near urban areas especially in the months after an event such as this.

ENDS

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