UPDATE: Main Beach Re-Opened

UPDATE: 9:30 a.m. Monday, July 9, 2012

Crystal Lake's Main Beach re-opened Monday morning after it was closed on Friday, July 6, 2012.

The McHenry County Department Health had closed the beach, located at 300 Lake Shore Dr., after routine water testing samples showed high levels of E.coli.

Weekend test samples revealed the water was once again safe for swimming, and the MCDH re-opened the beach Monday morning, said Jenny Leech, public information officer for the Crystal Lake Park District.

Typically, bacteria levels in area lakes rise after heavy rainfalls wash residue and waste from shorelines and streams. However, officials speculate that, for some reason, the extreme temperatures experienced last week may have contributed to the high E.coli counts.

"That's what they are speculating," Leech said. "For whatever reason, the samples came back high."

Article posted Sunday, July 8, 2012

Sunday was a beautiful day at Main Beach in Crystal Lake: blue skies, temperatures in the 80s and plenty of sunshine.

And, while several boats and sailboats bobbed across the water on the seemingly perfect summer day, those people hanging out at Main Beach weren't permitted to step foot into the water.

Water samples taken earlier last week showed elevated E.coli levels, and the McHenry County Department of Health issued an advisory to swimmers. As the week progressed, however, those levels climbed.

MCDH closed the beach to swimmers on Friday, July 6, sending swimmers over to West Beach on the other side of the lake.

Additional water samples were expected to be taken over the weekend, but results of those tests won't be available until Monday morning, according to the MCDH.