“Red Tide & Burning Eyes: Florida Coast is Hit With Unprecedented Outbreak”

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Residents near Sarasota, Florida are complaining about having itchy eyes and breathing problems, while dead fish have been washing up on their beaches. Due to this, a beach festival that was meant to occur next month has already been cancelled. The current red tide algae bloom first started back in October, and there are worries that it may stay for a while.

The BeachFest, which was supposed to take place in Indian Rocks Beach, Florida, was canceled by its host – a homeowners’ association. They made the decision after communicating with the city and learning that red tide is likely to still be around middle of next month when it was meant to happen.

The Indian Rocks Beach Homeowners Association said that there’s Red Tide on the beach and it won’t go away any time soon. Unfortunately, they had to cancel something because it was the best choice for people’s safety.

Recently, a lot of dead fish have been stuck on the beaches in Pinellas County. More than two tons (around 4,000 pounds!) of the fish have already been picked up and taken to the landfill. That’s more than 1,000 pounds just from St. Pete Beach alone!

Red tide is an algae bloom that shows up naturally in the Gulf of Mexico. It gets worse when it has extra nutrients like nitrogen, so the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission warns people to be careful when going near these waters. If you go swimming in or around red tide water, you might end up with skin irritation, rashes, and burning/sore eyes. People with breathing problems should avoid beaches where red tide could be found.

On Friday, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission informed that they had discovered a type of algae called red tide in 157 places on the Gulf Coast of Florida. The highest concentrations seem to be around Pinellas and Sarasota counties.