LATEST: Swimming restriction posted for Presque Isle Beach 8 has been lifted as of 12:42 p.m. July 9. It had been put into place Monday due to elevated E. coli levels.

(ERIE. P.A. - WICU/WSEE/CW) – The calm of the waves, and the shine, from the overhead sun, made Presque Isle Beach 8 the place to be.

But one place people could not be, was in the water itself.

On Monday, samples taken from the water on Sunday, showed high levels of the E.coli bacteria, meaning, it was not safe for swimming.

"Kinda bummed out a little bit." said Cleveland, Ohio native, Dave Meriwether.

Meriwether, and fellow native, Doris Talcott traveled from Cleveland to Erie for the first time, to get in an afternoon swim.

After moving beach-to-beach, they settled on beach eight, just to find out, all swimmers had to stay out.

"[We got the] luck of the draw, you can't go in the water." Meriwether said

While a bummer, Park Operations Manager, Matthew Greene says, it's just a part of nature.

"These things happen," said Greene.

Greene says bacteria levels can rise in many ways, from feces in animals like seagulls or geese, to simply, the way the water flows. Or even, with the wind.

"So, it can be going anywhere,” Greene said.

In the meantime, Greene says, the park will continue to check the levels. And if they are back to normal, you'll be able to hop in.

"And if it's not, we'll keep that beach closed, and we'll continue to direct people to one of the other beaches with much lower sampling.” he said

And despite the disappointment, both Meriwether and Talcott will be back.

“[Presque Isle is] still beautiful, I really like this place." said Meriwether

If you were in the water at beach eight at all, before the closure on Monday afternoon, Greene says, you should clean yourself off, by taking a shower or bath.

And if you start feeling sick, he says to contact your doctor

For an up-to-date view of sample collections, click here.

If E. coli counts are equal to or exceed 1000 CFU per 100 mL of water, a beach is posted as restricted swimming, according to Erie County Department of Health protocol. The count for Beach 8 was 1710.

Re-testing has begun and will be performed daily.

Visitors are not permitted to enter the water at the beach, but it is still open to the public for sunbathing and other recreational opportunities.