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this info came from an email alert from RSOE HAVARIA Emergency and Disaster Informtion Service
Federal officials today advised people to avoid contact with Lost Creek Lake water until further notice because of an outbreak of a toxic algae similar to one last summer that steered people clear of the reservoir for four weeks. Tests completed Monday identified the presence of Anabaena flos-aquae, an algae that releases neurotoxins that can cause everything from a skin rash and dizziness to rapid death, though that is extremely rare. It is most threatening to children and pets, and it congregates in shallow, stagnant coves and along shorelines. In places like Catfish Cove, the algae was more than 100 times above state thresholds for issuing the advisory, officials said. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers officials recommended that visitors avoid water contact and practice catch-and-release fishing until the advisory is lifted, said Ron Howard, the Corps’ park manager at the Corps-built reservoir off Highway 62 in northeastern Jackson County. Swallowing or inhaling water droplets should be avoided, as well as skin contact with water by humans or animals. The toxins cannot be removed by boiling, filtering or treating water. The restrictions were not mandatory. The Corps plans to install signs warning of the advisory this afternoon at popular lake access points, Howard said. Protocols call for leaving the advisory in place until two weeks after the algae disappears, Howard said. The algae releases its toxins as it dies, so the extra time allows for the toxins to dissipate naturally, he said. ------------------------------------
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