JEKYLL ISLAND, Fla. — High levels of bacteria were found at St. Andrews Beach on Jekyll Island and health officials say there's no way to know for sure if it could make you sick.
Crews are doing tests to learn more. They've been testing the water for 10 years, but last year St. Andrews Beach was under constant advisory so they decided to put it under permanent advisory. That means the beach access points will be open for visitors, making it safe to walk on the sand but it's not safe to swim in the water.
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The Georgia Department of Natural Resources says it's found high levels of fecal matter in the water, which officials believe is from the wildlife on Jekyll Island.
Health officials say ingesting the water or swimming with an open wound can expose you to illness. When Action News came to the beach and saw people swimming, we warned them about the advisory. One family came all the way from Canada and had their kids swimming in the water because they wanted to get closer to the dolphins.
"I hope it's OK because I told them it was OK to go in and clean off and I said 'don't worry if you get it in your mouth. It's salt water so it's clean.' Yea and you got it in your mouth a couple times. Yea," said Maryanne Currie.
Health officials say if you do enter the water at your own risk, make sure you rinse off well. The Georgia DNR will be doing quarterly testing to see if the bacteria levels come back down.
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