Wildwood Crest Ocean Passes Water Quality Test; Open to Bathers

WILDWOOD CREST – The ocean in Wildwood Crest has reopened to the public following the results of water quality tests conducted July 1 in the wake of a malfunction at the Cape May County Municipal Utilities Authority’s (MUA) Wildwood-Lower Wastewater Treatment Plant.
According to a release, all results of the most recent water quality testing in the affected areas from Miami Avenue to Jefferson Avenue were clean, according to Kevin Thomas, Cape May County public health coordinator.
Those test results were released in the morning July 2.
The aforementioned areas of the ocean were closed to the public early afternoon July 1 by the county Department of Health as a precautionary measure, after officials from the MUA discovered earllier in the morning that the last of three phases in its wastewater treatment system at the Wildwood- Lower Wastewater Treatment Plant failed to trigger during a period from sometime June 30 in the afternoon through July 1 in the morning for treated water funneled through an outfall line that extends one mile into the ocean at Jefferson Avenue in Wildwood Crest.
At no time did the county Department of Health receive negative water quality test results in the affected areas. However, the ocean was closed only out of an abundance of caution until the results of the most recent water quality tests became known.
“We’re glad that, as expected, the latest water quality tests came back clean and we are happy to report that the ocean is open throughout the entire borough,” stated Wildwood Crest Mayor Don Cabrera. “The Borough of Wildwood Crest supports the Cape May County Department of Health’s decision to briefly close the ocean in the southern end of our community as a precautionary measure. We’d never want anyone to go into the ocean without knowing it was safe for any reason. The health and safety of the public will always be our top priority.
“The borough will be proactive and will work with the Cape May County Board of Chosen Freeholders and the Cape May County MUA in attempting to discover what caused this issue to ensure that this will not happen again in the future.”