Red tide impacts increasing in Southwest Florida

Reporter: Rachel Cox-Rosen
Published: Updated:
December 17, 2020 red tide map.

If you plan to spend the weekend at the beach, those plans could be changing if you’re susceptible to breathing problems from red tide.

The latest red tide map shows high levels near Pine Island and between Bonita Beach and Naples.

We checked out Barefoot and Vanderbilt beaches Thursday morning and we’ve noticed impacts getting worse on Barefoot Beach throughout the day.

We saw a few dead fish washed ashore in the afternoon.

Amber Bigica of Collier County said, “I was really surprised when I showed up because I immediately started getting a tickle in my throat and started having a cough and of course in today’s day and age it’s kind of concerning, and I didn’t even realize it was red tide.”

We have seen signs popping up around Southwest Florida beaches warning people about the presence of red tide, but some are taking their chances at a beach day anyway.

You can click HERE for an interactive respiratory forecast map.

 

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