Council issues warning over potential for algal blooms in Lough Ree
By Rebekah O'Reilly
Roscommon County Council has said it's planning to erect warning signs at popular water amenity areas to advise the public of the dangers of potentially harmful algal blooms.
The local authority issued a statement after being contacted by the Westmeath Independent in the aftermath of the death of a well-known dog last week following a swim in Lough Ree.
Speaking this week, Athlone Sweets founder Anton Shevlin said he believed it was algae poisoning from the water at Hodson Bay that caused the death of his dog, Tango.
In response to a query by this paper, a Roscommon County Council spokesperson said it had received "a number of queries from the public about water safety related to the presence of algal blooms in Lough Ree and other waters around the county".
The spokesperson said a notification was also received from Westmeath County Council on Wednesday, July 22, about an incident in which "a dog died following suspected exposure to harmful algae in Lough Ree".
It added: "Roscommon County Council posted precautionary warnings related to potential algal blooms on the council's social media accounts following the receipt of this notification."
The council went on to say that there are "no designated bathing waters" in county Roscommon, so there is no routine sampling of bathing waters in the county.
"However, staff from the Roscommon County Council environment department have inspected all locations where suspected harmful algae have been reported, but no algal blooms have been confirmed in 2026 to date," the council's response said.
"As a further precaution, Roscommon County Council will also place new signage at popular water amenity areas to advise the public of the dangers of potentially harmful algal blooms."
Roscommon County Council is advising the public not to swim or allow pets to enter the water "where there are any indications that harmful algae may be present".
The council's response concluded that its environment department would "continue to monitor and investigate all reports of suspected algal blooms throughout the county."