Unsafe E. coli levels found in Seine River less than 2 months before Olympics
According to the results of tests published on June 14th, an unsafe high level of E. coli was found in the Seine River in Paris, and the fact was actually established less than two months before the scheduled Olympic swimming competitions, The Associated Press reports
In the first eight days of June, after persistent heavy rains in Paris, the level of water pollution with bacteria such as E. coli and enterococci exceeded the limits judged safe for humans.
"The report was published by monitoring group Eau de Paris one day after a senior International Olympic Committee executive said there was ‘no reason to doubt’ races will go ahead as scheduled in a historic downtown stretch of the Seine near the Eiffel Tower,” the article reads.
The possibility of holding competitions in the Seine has been questionable since some test competitions scheduled last August were cancelled, also due to unseasonal heavy rains.
Earlier, Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo repeated her promise to swim in the river before the start of the competition. On June 11th, she confirmed that her swim was postponed until after the snap elections in France, which will end in July.
