Sarasota residents see some respite from red tide, but bloom worsens in Pinellas

Jesse Mendoza, Sarasota Herald-Tribune
·2 min read
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Samples show that a red tide bloom that has plagued Sarasota County waters for weeks has now concentrated around Pinellas County.
Samples show that a red tide bloom that has plagued Sarasota County waters for weeks has now concentrated around Pinellas County.

The center of a red tide bloom that has plagued Sarasota County for weeks has moved north and has now concentrated along the Pinellas County coast and Gulf of Mexico waters near Tampa Bay.

The red tide bloom first took hold off the Sarasota County shore at the end of October. Sarasota County residents are seeing some reprieve this week from the effects of red tide, which has caused respiratory irritation for beachgoers, fish kills, murky waters, and foul smells in recent weeks.

S.W. Florida beach water quality map:See test results for your favorite beach

Florida red tide map:Current status

Previously:Red tide is blooming offshore from Southwest Florida communities hit hardest by Ian

Samples processed by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission showed red tide levels in Sarasota diminished last week, moving further north off the shore of Pinellas County.

On Friday, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission reported finding high concentrations of red tide in samples collected offshore from Pinellas County last week, background to high concentrations in in Sarasota County, and background to medium concentrations in Manatee County. They also found red tide at lower levels further south in Charlotte, Lee, Collier and Monroe.

Fish kills and respiratory irritation that are believed to be associated with red tide have also been reported in Pinellas, Manatee, Sarasota, Lee and Collier counties over the past week, according to the FWC.

Mote Marine ambassador reported clear water at Longboat Key, Siesta Key Beach and Blind Pass, and Englewood Beach in Sarasota County on Monday, but "moderate" water color in Nokomis, Venice North Jetty Beach, Venice Beach and Manasota Key Beach.

Ambassadors show moderate water color in Manatee County beaches, but no dead fish or respiratory irritation on Monday.

The stingy red tide took first took foothold in Florida's gulf coast this year soon after Hurricane Ian made landfall, near communities that were most directly impacted by the Category 4 storm.

Experts credit hurricane force winds and a change in water currents he pushing Karenia Brevis, a microscopic organism that causes red tide, toward local waters in October — where it was met by polluted floodwaters that washed into the gulf from Gulf Coast and central Florida communities for days following the storm.

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Red tide bloom that's plagued Sarasota County moves north