April 25, 2024

POLK COUNTY – The Florida Department of Health in Polk County (DOH-Polk) has issued a Health Alert for the presence of harmful blue-green algal toxins in Lake Conine - at Lucerne Park Rd Boat Ramp, Lake Conine – Boat Ramp, Lake Gibson – West, Scott Lake - West, and Tiger Lake - Center.

This is in response to water samples taken on April 2, 2024, April 10, 2024, April 15, 2024, April 16, 2024, and January 24, 2024.

The public should exercise caution in and around Lake Conine - at Lucerne Park Rd Boat Ramp, Lake Conine – Boat Ramp, Lake Gibson – West, Scott Lake - West, and Tiger Lake - Center.

Residents and visitors are advised to take the following precautions:

• Do not drink, swim, wade, use personal watercraft, water ski or boat in waters where there is a visible bloom.
• Wash your skin and clothing with soap and water if you have contact with algae or discolored or smelly water.
• Keep pets away from the area. Waters where there are algae blooms are not safe for animals. Pets and livestock should have a different source of water when algae blooms are present.
• Do not cook or clean dishes with water contaminated by algae blooms. Boiling the water will not eliminate the toxins.
• Eating fillets from healthy fish caught in freshwater lakes experiencing blooms is safe. Rinse fish fillets with tap or bottled water, throw out the guts and cook fish to appropriate temperature.
• Do not eat shellfish in waters with algae blooms.