Winter Park, Maitland reopen lakes
Some local governments warning residents against boating, swimming
Winter Park and Maitland reopened their lakes to the public Monday, although other local governments are still warning residents against boating or swimming because of pollution, flooding and debris left by Hurricane Irma.
The storm bombarded Central Florida with wind and rain, overwhelming or disabling many sewage pumping stations while raising water levels and dumping debris everywhere, including in the region’s lakes and ponds.
In Orlando, an alert issued Sept. 8 is still in effect for all of the city’s lakes, though only one major body
of water is currently known to be contaminated: Lake Rowena, which was tainted when a sewer pump that lost power during the storm failed, dumping 15,000 gallons of waste.
Seminole County is under a similar advisory. Alan Harris, the county’s emergency manager, cited concerns ranging from runoff from nearby roadways to displaced wildlife and “extremely high” water levels that could prevent boaters from being able to see docks.
“There are just too many hazards right now to lift the advisories,” Harris said. “We do not want to prevent anyone from enjoying the beautiful waterways of Florida, but this may not be the best time.”
Orange County also is still under a general advisory, which warns residents to “avoid all contact with lake water.” Two lakes are still under alerts for contamination are Lake Conway, near Belle Isle south of Orlando, and Lake Pearl, west of the city in Gotha.
An Osceola County spokesman said he wasn’t aware of any lake closures. The marina at St. Cloud’s Lakefront Park is open, though boaters are warned to be careful of high water levels and debris, said police Sgt. Anthony Miller, a spokesman for the city.
Ron Hart of the Lake County Water Authority said fallen trees and other obstructions that blocked some waterways have mostly been cleared. Still, boaters should be careful before swimming in small water bodies and near shore, in case of pollution, he said.
“There hasn’t been anything produced to the magnitude that would cause a concern regarding swimming out in the middle of Lake Eustis from your boat,” Hart said.
Cassandra Lafser, a spokeswoman for Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer, said there was no timeframe for when the city will give the all-clear to get back in the water.
“We’re working with our neighboring jurisdictions as well as monitoring our lakes and test results,” Lafser said in an email Monday. “As our lakes are connected to other systems, not just located in the City, the coordination with other municipalities is critical.”
Bacterial counts in Lake Rowena, which stretches from Mills Avenue to Harry P. Leu Gardens, have dropped significantly, but not yet to state water quality standards, according to the city’s most recent update.
Hurricane Irma triggered unprecedented sewage spills across the state, knocking out power to pumping stations and overwhelming processing plants. In Orange County, a blown-out motor at one plant caused 180,000 gallons of sewage to flow into Shingle Creek’s watershed.
In Orlando, a lift station in a commercial area of East Colonial Drive lost more than 485,000 gallons of sewage after failing during the storm.
Spills were reported everywhere in Central Florida — and in cities from Miami to Jacksonville and from St. Petersburg to St. Augustine — with most of the trouble stemming from power outages that killed pumps.
Officials have said the spills are not likely the cause of a post-storm smell many residents have detected; that, experts said, is more likely the odious product of dead fish, saturated ground water and muck from flooding.
Winter Park and Maitland opted to reopen their lakes after determining bacterial counts were normal, said Rick Lemke, Maitland’s public works director. However, the Venetian Canal will remain closed between Lake Osceola and Maitland because of downed trees.