Raymond health officials shut down the town beach on Sebago Lake Wednesday afternoon following reports of an unusually high E. coli count.
Earlier that day, the Portland Water District, which tests different areas of Sebago Lake weekly, notified town officials that the E. coli colony-forming unit (CFU) count at the waters off Raymond Beach had registered at 441, which is 206 units higher than the accepted limit of 235.
According to Cathy Gosselin, Raymond’s town health officer and deputy chief of the fire department, Raymond last shut down the beach in 2010, again due to a high E. coli count. The E. coli count at the beach usually measures near 50 CFU, Gosselin said.
Gosselin, who has worked for the town since 1998, said she recalls the beach only being closed twice before. In general, she said, it is difficult to pinpoint why the E. Coli counts suddenly jump.
“It’s a cove,” she said. “It’s Fourth of July, so it was very busy over the hot weather. It’s next to the boat ramp. A boat could have spilled something. There could be a lot of ducks or animals in the water.”
Water district researchers will test the water again Friday morning, and will continue to test it daily until the counts return to acceptable levels, Gosselin said. Until then, the beach will remain closed, she said.
“It’s high enough to make us want to close it until we got another reading,” she said.
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