What’s up with that? — Seeking more about illnesses reported at beach in Spring Lake – Star News Group

I heard a number of people became ill after swimming in the ocean at Spring Lake’s south end on Labor Day. What’s up with that?

The Coast Star was able to confirm with Caryn Shinske of the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection [NJDEP] that the department was contacted on Wednesday, Sept. 6 by a resident whose husband went paddleboarding that day and fell ill afterwards. Ms. Shinske could not say where the resident had been paddle boarding.

Efforts to reach officials within the Monmouth County Health Department for comment were unsuccessful.

The Coast Star also spoke with Spring Lake Borough Administrator W. Bryan Dempsey, who said he was aware of the issue but could not provide more specific information. He noted, however, that routinely scheduled water tests after Labor Day showed no unusual results.

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Christopher Orlando, a spokesperson for the Monmouth County Department of Public Information, referred The Coast Star to spreadsheet data from the tests, published on the NJDEP website. 

The data shows the results of routine water testing in various stations across Spring Lake Beach. The tests show no change in results between the tests conducted in Spring Lake before Labor Day, on Aug. 28, and after Labor Day, on Sept. 5.

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