HOLIDAYMAKERS heading to a popular British beach have been given urgent warnings to stay away from the sea.
Red flags have put been in place ordering people not to swim in waters off picturesque Wells-next-the-Sea in Norfolk.
The new health concerns were sparked by raised levels of bacteria reported by environmental officials.
Council chiefs have said they received a “pollution risk forecast alert” from the national Environment Agency, which suggests potential danger to anyone taking a dip.
North Norfolk District Council were on alert “awaiting further guidance” from the watchdog about when they might be able to take the red flags down.
A council spokesman suggested the potential risk was “different from a controlled spillage overflow alert”, the Eastern Daily Press reported.
The summertime warning comes amid nationwide concerns about vast volumes of raw sewage being discharged into UK waterways including not only the sea but also rivers.
The Environment Agency said of the Norfolk red flags: “These forecasts are based on rainfall, wind and tidal patterns and alert people when water quality may be poor.”
Similar flags were raised at nearby Mundesley Beach for just a day last month, but the Wells-next-the-Sea ones have been in place since Wednesday.
And the health fears come right in the middle of the resort’s annual carnival week.
Steffan Aquarone, the Liberal Democrats’ prospective parliamentary candidate for North Norfolk, said he was “disgusted and dismayed” another local beach had been flagged for water quality worries.
But Holkham Estate, which owns the beach at Wells-next-the-Sea, insisted the red flag alert was “not related to raw sewage”.
A spokesman said: “The bacteria at Wells is natural and related to the salt marshes and ‘wash off’ of bird/animal faeces.”
Residents earlier this summer raised fears that Wells-next-the-Sea’s charms were being threatened by hordes of newbuild homes.
There have also been complaints about an influx of second home-buyers and holiday lets.
The Environment Agency also this week issued similar warnings to stay out of the sea at another much-used tourist beach– this time at Viking Bay in Broadstairs, Kent.
Officials said there were raised levels of bacteria – potentially linked to stormy weather battering the coastline during recent days.
Beachgoers there were previously urged to stay out in June, when Southern Water sewage systems were deliberately leaked into the sea to stop homes and businesses being flooded instead.
Urgent health warnings were issued to 54 beaches across the UK last month due to sewage pollution.
Visitors to Blackpool, one of Britain’s top coastal resorts, were also warned in June by the Environment Agency not to swim in the sea after a sewage spill.
Meanwhile, parents in polluted seaside resorts say they’re refusing to let their kids swim in the water– despite tourists still flocking in and giving rave reviews.
Families sounded the alarm across the Yorkshire coast in popular holiday attraction towns including Bridlington, Filey, Scarborough and Whitby.
Some 1,504 sewage spills affected Blue Flag beaches in England last year, despite them being awarded for being safe and clean.
The worst affected was Blackpool Sands beach, Environment Agency figures suggested – with 65 sewage discharges by South West Water lasting 1,014 hours.
Another Devon beach, Meadfoot, had 79 sewage spills lasting 946 hours – while Brighton Beach had 107 hours of sewage discharge, happening 45 times last year.
Complaints have also been raised about sewage being leaked into waterways such as the Cumbrian village of Cark’s River Eea.
Other areas of concern include Gorleston beach, between Norfolk’s Great Yarmouth and Lowestoft in Suffolk.
Thames Water was recently hit with a multi-million pound fine for polluting rivers.
The company was charged £3.3million after millions of litres of undiluted sewage was allowed to flow into two rivers in October 2017 – the Gatwick Stream and the River Mole between Crawley in West Sussex and Horley in Surrey.