WATER QUALITY REPORT FOR SEPT. 22, 2024
Prologue
Hurricane forecasting, apparently, just got really easy.
Top hurricane forecasters this weekend agreed a faraway cluster of thunderstorms in the Caribbean will, any minute now, become Hurricane Helene and, minutes later, strengthen into a Category 3 or 4 and wallop Florida.
“A major hurricane is coming to the Gulf of Mexico. AccuWeather meteorologists warn that communities along the central and eastern Gulf Coast only have a few 'days' to prepare for the fast-brewing, quick-moving storm, which can potentially bring life-threatening storm surge, flooding rainfall, and destructive winds.
Oh. “Days,” not “minutes.” But you get my point.
The Story
Since I am very humbly aware that most people do not read WGCU’s Water Quality Report as regularly as their Twitter/X feed, I will recap my words from this same space just one short week ago.
“I still believe we have a spate of hurricanes to come and that red tides - as in plural – will follow.”
Imagine my surprise, then, when my week-old prediction precedes a forecast for a major hurricane to rise out of a bunch of showers more than 500 miles away from Fort Myers on Sunday.
"This can be a large storm with life-threatening impacts such as storm surge and flooding rain hundreds of miles away from where the storm makes landfall,” Jon Porter, AccuWeather chief meteorologist said. “Be sure to know the risks you can face in your community."
Both AccuWeather and the National Hurricane Center’s predictions on Sunday led Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis to declare a state of emergency in 41 counties, which is nearly twice the 23 that actually front the Gulf of Mexico.
That includes Collier, Lee, and Charlotte counties.
On the rarest of occasions, such as when the Florida Lotto jackpot rises to $100 billion, I knowingly throw away the $2 to enter. The winning numbers on the ping-pong balls that get sucked up into that tube are never the same numerals I predicted would win.
When I want my predictions to be right, in this case so I win a billion dollars, they’re wrong.
If I want my forecasting to be wrong, to spare millions from the harm of hurricanes and repulsion at nasty beaches, the hurricane train comes rocketing into the station, and multiple red tides appear.
Epilouge
My correct predictions that the markers for red tide would start to show and hurricane activity would be heating up are certainly not signs of magical ability or massive intelligence.
Red tides tend to show up when fall does, which was Sunday, and the middle of the Atlantic Hurricane Season, when storms tend to blow up regularly for a few months, was last week.
Hurricane forecasting, however, is truly an art and a science. It takes hard-earned ability and honest smarts to play the high-stakes game of hurricane forecasting.
Pay attention to the meteorologists.
Since they are all predicting a tropical cyclone will form any day, use the hot ocean water to get strong enough to turn into a major hurricane with sustained winds above 111 mph, and then head toward Florida you better be ready right now.
Get your hurricane kit. Two gallons of water per person, per day. Food, flashlights, batteries, first aid kits, and so on.
You know what to do in the event of this type of emergency.
This is not a drill.
We now turn to WGCU’s Water Quality Report, but only if our hurricane readiness and supplies are completed.
RED TIDE
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission found the red tide organism, Karenia brevis, in eleven samples in Southwest Florida’s coastal water during the past week.
The good news about the bad news is that the prevalence of the organism ranged from background levels to low, and it was discovered to the north of Lee and Collier counties.
Dead fish probably killed by red tide washed ashore on beaches in Sarasota County, and the tell-tale coughing, sneezing, and scratchy throats that afflict many when red tide is in the air were reported at the Sarasota County beaches at Siesta Key and Venice’s North Jetty.
The Clinic for the Rehabilitation of Wildlife on Sanibel Island admitted four birds with signs of exposure to red tide. One died, and the rest are still receiving care.
BLUE-GREEN ALGAE
Environmental satellite images from NASA showed the presence of an algal bloom on Lake Okeechobee, but cloud cover and wind prevented an assessment of its size.
The FDEP says it is important to remember the blue-green algae potential is subject to rapidly changing environmental conditions or satellite inconsistencies.
What is red tide?
Red tide is one type of harmful algal bloom caused by high concentrations of the toxic dinoflagellate K. brevis, which is a type of microscopic algae found in the Gulf of Mexico.
Red tide typically forms naturally offshore, commonly in late summer or early fall, and is carried into coastal waters by winds and currents. Once inshore, these opportunistic organisms can use nearshore nutrient sources to fuel their growth.
Blooms typically last into winter or spring, but in some cases, can endure for more than one year.
Is red tide harmful?
K. brevis produces potent neurotoxins that can be harmful to the health of both wildlife and people. Wind and wave action can break open K. brevis cells and release toxins into the air. This is why you should monitor conditions and stay away from beaches where red tide is in bloom.
People in coastal areas can experience varying degrees of eye, nose and throat irritation during a red tide bloom. Some individuals with chronic respiratory conditions like asthma or chronic lung disease might experience more severe symptoms.
Red tide toxins can also affect the central nervous system of fish and other marine life, which can lead to fish kills.
What causes red tide?
=red tide bloom develops naturally, but recent studies have discovered mankind's infusion of other nutrients into the mix can make the red tide last longer or get stronger. But biology (the organisms), chemistry (natural or man-made nutrients for growth) and physics (concentrating and transport mechanisms) interact to produce the algal bloom. No one factor causes the development of a red tide bloom.
What is blue-green algae?
Blue-green algae, also known as cyanobacteria, are a group of organisms that can live in freshwater, saltwater or brackish water.
Large concentrations, called blooms, can change the water color to blue, green, brown, orange or red. Some cyanobacterial blooms can look like foam, scum, or mats on the surface of freshwater lakes and ponds. As algae in a cyanobacterial bloom die, the water may smell like something with a naturally unpleasant odor has now started to rot, too.
Is blue-green algae harmful?
Different types of blue-green algal bloom species can look different and have different impacts. However, regardless of species, many types of blue-green algae can produce toxins that can make you or your pets sick if swallowed or possibly cause skin and eye irritation.
The FDEP advises staying out of the water where algae are visibly present as specks or mats or where water is discolored. Pets or livestock should not come into contact with algal bloom-impacted water or with algal bloom material or fish on the shoreline. If they do, wash the animals right away.
What causes blue-green algae?
Blue-green algae blooms occur when the algae that are typically present grow in numbers more than normal. Within a few days, a bloom can cause clear water to become cloudy.
Winds tend to push the floating blooms to the shore where they become more noticeable. Cyanobacterial blooms can form in warm, slow-moving waters that are rich in nutrients. Blooms can occur at any time, but most often occur in late summer or early fall.
If any major type of water quality alert is issued, you can find the details here in WGCU’s Water Quality Report.
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