Sources from the captaincies of Olhão, which is responsible for the Fuseta area, and Portimão, which is responsible for the beaches in the Silves area, told Lusa that the decision was based on water samples that revealed the presence of E.coli bacteria, in the case of Fuseta, and enterococci, in the case of Armação de Pera.

“At 11:00, we received a message from the health officer saying that bathing was prohibited,” the captain of the port of Olhão, Alexandre Algarvio, told Lusa, adding that the analysis was carried out on Monday and that “a new sample was collected for analysis”.

The environmental authorities will now carry out a new analysis, which will then determine whether the ban on Fuseta-Ria beach, located in the Ria Formosa (Faro district), will be maintained, the captain of the port added.

Regarding the case of Armação de Pera, the captain of the port of Portimão told Lusa that the Algarve Hydrographic Region Administration (ARH), on the proposal of the Algarve Regional Health Authority, advised against going swimming due to the results of an analysis carried out on a sample taken on Monday.

As “intestinal enterococci levels above the limit were detected, bathing is not recommended”, stated Eduardo Pousadas Godinho.

The same source stressed that this is a forecast that is still subject to confirmation, as it depends on the results of the samples collected.