A Tale Of Two Beaches

For Sayville residents looking to find some relief from the summer heat the beach at Sayville Marina Park at the end of Foster Avenue remains open.

However, just a half-mile away, Sayville Beach located on Brown’s River Road remains closed because of high levels of bacteria in the water. The beach was shut on July 28 following test results of high levels of enterococci, according to the Suffolk County Department of Health’s website.

Lifeguards at Sayville Beach told Patch that they are informed of closures on a daily basis via a hotline number. The waters at Sayville Beach and at Marina Park are tested and sampled almost daily by the health department, lifeguards said. If the levels of bacteria are fine, the waters remain open, but advisories are issued for swimmers when the levels rise.

Upon closing the beach this past week, health department officials said they were unaware of what factors caused bacteria levels to rise. The runoff from heavy rainfalls is one factor that could typically contribute to the bacteria. The health department was still investigating what caused the rise in bacteria at Sayville Beach and is unsure of when the beach will be reopened to swimmers.

It is also unclear why Sayville Beach has high bacteria levels and Marina Park remains open. Some beach-goers believed it was because Sayville Beach is in such a small concentrated area, while Marina Park is much larger. 

On Wednesday, Marina Park was busy with swimmers and bathers and some were not aware of the closure at Sayville Beach. Two people taking in the sun at Sayville Beach on the same day said they weren’t planning on going in the water for some time anyway, whether or not the bacteria levels subsided.

For more information, visit www.suffolkcountyny.gov/health or call the Suffolk County Bathing Beach hotline at 852-5822 or Suffolk County Department of Health Services at 852-5760.