Chattahoochee safe to swim again, says NPS

MARIETTA — E. coli bacteria levels in the Chattahoochee are back to normal levels. The number of bacteria in the river had been elevated after Tropical Storm Alberto caused the Army Corps of Engineers to release dam water late last month, dragging the sicknessinducing critters into the river.

But speaking from the Chattahoochee National Recreation Area’s Johnson Ferry Unit in east Cobb, ranger Ethan Feller said the dam dumping has stopped and things are starting to look like summer at the Hooch again.

“This is the first weekend we’ve had in a while where … flow is down, back to normal, the bacteria counts are starting to return to normal,” he said. “We’re taking down the signs that say it’s not advised to go in the river. Things have started to turn back to normally what you’d expect in the summertime.”

As Feller spoke, workers unlatched stacks of inflatable tubes from the back of a truck for customers to ride down the river.

“Now that the concessioners have opened back up, people are able to come and rent from them and the number of people visiting the park, especially now with river use, there seems to be a lot of people on the river,” he said. “Things are starting to look more like a normal summer day.”

The concessioners were from Nantahala Outdoor Center, and spokesman Jan Wojtasinski said all 35 of their employees on the Chattahoochee are excited to get back to work after about two weeks away.