MDEQ issues water contact advisory

The Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality issued a water contact advisory for a section of Gulfport beach Thursday.

MDEQ, through its Beach Monitoring Program, advised swimmers to stay out of the water from the segment of beach from 20th Avenue eastward to Thornton Avenue.

The water may have high bacteria levels. There may be an increased risk of illness.

The Beach Task Force has a standing recommendation that swimming not occur during or within 24 hours of a significant rainfall event.

When water samples show that levels are safe for human contact, the advisory will be lifted.

More information concerning the alert and additional beach information can be found at MDEQ’s Beach Monitoring website.

This story was originally published June 23, 2016 at 4:55 PM with the headline "MDEQ issues water contact advisory."