PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. — It's two words you don't want to hear, especially if you have beach plans this week—red tide.
Dead fish are starting to wash up on our shore due to toxins in the water. The FWC identified red tide popping up in Pinellas, Manatee and Sarasota Counties.
"It wasn't as much fun being here this morning as it usually is," said Jeoffrey Longster, who loves going to Treasure Island Beach.
Longster visits Treasure Island Beach a few times a year and said this year is different than others.
"Not too comfortable, there's just a lot of debris and stuff that's washed from the sea," said Longster.
Not only did hurricanes Helene and Milton devastate the beach, but now there's one more thing to worry about.
"There's certainly a lot of dead fish a lot of huge scallop shells, all dead. And the vultures are there doing the clean up," said Longster.
Red tide occurs when nitrogen and phosphorus nutrients pollute the water.
Justin Tramble with the Tampa Bay Waterkeeper said hurricanes Helene and Milton could have done just that.
"We could be experiencing the impacts of the last couple of storms, the runoff and all the pollution from those," said Tramble.
Local experts said some beaches may have less red tide than others, so it's better to be informed before you go to the beach.
Tramble's organization and the FWC are monitoring areas where red tide is showing up, one being Treasure Island.
"We've had report of dead fish, mullet, bate fish being washed up on the shore…and some respiratory issues. People coughing and that type of thing," said Tramble.
Tramble said more needs to be done to prevent pollution that can happen from stormwater runoff.
"Invest in infrastructure that prevents significant nutrients from going into our water," he said.
But for now, experts said if you have respiratory issues, you should avoid going to the beach.
"It's not good news, obviously it does affect when it's in the air. I have friends who live on the coast who have asthma, and it absolutely lays them flat," said Longster.
Longster said despite the red tide, he has hope for the future of Treasure Island.
"I just hope people come back and enjoy it when they can," said Longster.
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