On a recent sweltering afternoon at Byram Beach in Greenwich, Barbara Beqiraj reclined in the shade of a pavilion and recalled the time she startled the daylights out of her Albanian-born husband, a recent immigrant who hadn't seen much ocean in his life.

He'd sprinted joyously across the sand at Byram and was just about to dash into Long Island Sound when Beqiraj screamed, "Don't go in the water!"

Stopped him cold. She chuckled at the memory and added that she hasn't gone into the water at Byram in five years. A few yards away, a well-worn "beach-closed" sign was stuck in the sand, punctuating her point. Seven-tenths of an inch of rain had fallen the night before, more than enough to raise the bacteria count and shut Byram Beach.

Many swimming areas around the state, coastal and inland, share Byram's plight. Though by and large they are well-groomed and well-managed, on any given summer day, dozens of swimming spots are just one good rainfall away from closing. The problem: storm water runoff that carries feces from wild animals or pets, and contaminants from highways, subdivisions, malls and farms into the water. Over the last decade, swimmers lost at least 3,000 days to bacteria-related closings, based on The Courant's examination of 10 years of closure data for Long Island Sound beaches and state parks, and four years of records for other lakes and ponds.

And while it's hard to track how many people are getting sick as a result, federal officials say instances of water-born illness contracted in recreational waters are on the rise around the country.

Already this season, the 10 most affected areas have lost at least 45 swimming days to contamination.

Full Story: http://www.courant.com/news/health/hc-swimmingholes0629.artjun29,0,1008684.story