Miami-Dade Water Samples Tested For Red Tide As Precaution

MIAMI BEACH, FL — With the fear of red tide washing ashore in South Florida for the first time in years, four water samples have been taken in Miami-Dade County as a precautionary measure, including two from Miami Beach, city officials confirmed Tuesday. The results of the analysis are expected back on Thursday. City officials stressed there have been no signs of red tide in Miami-Dade County.

"Beach goers are encouraged to check conditions before they go to the beach as conditions can change daily," Miami Beach officials cautioned in an email to residents.

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"Over the weekend, a number of beach communities in Palm Beach County closed their beaches due to possible red tide," Miami Beach officials said. "On Monday, sampling in Palm Beach County that was conducted in response to red tide indicators came back positive."

City officials said that the samples were collected by the Miami-Dade County Department of Regulatory and Economic Resources, Environmental Resources Management. The sampling and analysis is being coordinated with the Fish and Wildlife Research Institute.

A red tide, or harmful algal bloom, is a higher-than-normal concentration of a microscopic alga (plantlike organism), according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. In Florida and the Gulf of Mexico, the species that causes most red tides is Karenia brevis, often abbreviated as K. brevis. To distinguish K. brevis blooms from red tides caused by other species of algae, researchers in Florida call the former the “Florida red tide,” FWC officials said.

State officials added that red tides date back at least as far as the 1700s in the southern Gulf of Mexico and along Florida's Gulf coast from the 1840s. Fish kills near Tampa Bay were mentioned in the records of Spanish explorers.

"Red tides can last as little as a few weeks or longer than a year. They can even subside and then reoccur," state officials said.

In Florida, a bloom of Karenia brevis, persists in Southwest Florida and extends along 130 miles of coastline, from northern Pinellas to southern Lee counties, and extends offshore (10 miles or more). A patchy bloom of K. brevis also continues in Northwest Florida, according to the FWC.

The Florida Department of Health is also monitoring the situation in Miami-Dade County, Miami Beach officials said.

View the statewide Red Tide Current Status. Call 866-300-9399 at any time from anywhere in Florida to hear a recording about red tide conditions throughout the state. Callers outside of Florida can dial 727-552-2448. For red tide health concerns, call the Florida Poison Control Information Center at 800-222-1222. For the latest conditions in Miami Beach click here. To report fish kills call 800.636.0511.

Photo courtesy Miami Beach Fire Department