Bacteria prompt Banks Channel swimming advisories

State health regulators have issued swimming advisories for two soundside areas in Wrightsville Beach south of Causeway Drive.

But the warnings against water-contact activities in Banks Channel could come down before the Labor Day holiday weekend if tests from samples taken today come back within safe limits.

Those results won’t be known until Friday.

The signs, which advise against swimming within 200 feet, were posted at the Hanover Seaside Club near Iula Street and across from the Blockade Runner Beach Resort Hotel.

Both sites are chronic problem areas, with warnings often issued after rains wash polluted stormwater into pipes that dump into the channel. The pipes drain parking areas, which are often popular with waterfowl, and parts of Waynick Boulevard.

Last year, a swimming advisory for the water around the beach club was in effect for 63 days between May 1 and Sept. 30, including the busy Fourth of July holiday.

The beach area across from the Blockade Runner, where the swim leg of the annual Wilmington YMCA Triathlon starts, had an advisory up for 35 days during the same period. The triathlon takes place Sept. 29.

But the National Weather Service didn’t record any precipitation at the Wilmington International Airport on Tuesday or Wednesday.

The water samples were taken on Wednesday.

Summer showers, however, can be very localized. The region also received heavy rains on Monday.

The advisories were posted today after water samples showed bacteria levels above federal and state standards. Although not a health hazard itself, the bacteria is an indicator of organisms that can cause gastrointestinal and skin problems.