Sydney’s newest beach shut down over pollution amid sweltering temperatures
A popular beach was left empty despite soaring temperatures as the man-made swimming spot is closed for a gross reason.
Sydneysiders hoping to cool down amid soaring temperatures have been turned away from a newly opened beach due to pollution.
Man-made Penrith Beach in western Sydney was closed on Thursday due to the water quality and contamination from rainwater more than one month after its opening.
The Castlereagh Rd beach closure comes as temperatures in Penrith reached 37C as a heatwave rolls across Sydney.
“We’re grateful to everyone for their patience in the last 24 hours while we made sure the beach was safe for swimming,” a spokesperson said.
“The mercury is set to hit the high 30s tomorrow, so locals will be thrilled to know our latest water quality testing has returned to its usual high standard and the all-clear has been given for Penrith Beach to reopen this afternoon from 1:30pm
The NSW government said daily testing was being conducted and the popular beach had been reopened as it was deemed safe for the public.
The contamination follows beach closures across Sydney last week, with 26 popular swimming spots deemed to have “high contamination levels” after prolonged rainfall caused stormwater pollution.
The NSW government said Penrith Beach was expected to reopen in “no more than a few days”.
Pollution updates can be found on the Beachwatch NSW website.
‘Fairy’ fashions for start of festival season
Thousands of music fans have descended on Sydney Showgrounds for Australia’s “largest outdoor music festival”.
Albo’s ‘historic’ meeting with world leader
Anthony Albanese has met with the head of the Greek Orthodox Church in Sydney in an event he described as historic.
Kids flee forced marriages arranged by dad
A man has learned his fate after trying to arrange separate forced marriages for his teenage children, with a court being told the pair fled the family home after learning of the plot.