CHESTERTON, Ind. -- The swimming beach at Indiana Dunes State Park was reopened Thursday after being closed because of an unidentified substance" that was found in the water.
Indiana Department of Natural Resources closed the beach around 1:30 p.m. Wednesday as a precaution after a lifeguard spotted the "contamination."
IDNR’s Director of Communication Phil Bloom said samples were collected and turned over to the Indiana Department of Environmental Management for testing. That testing could take some time.
The beach remained closed Wednesday evening but was reopened on Thursday after Bloom said the "foreign contamination" was no longer visible in the water.
Bloom said they were still waiting on the results of the testing from IDEM.
Mount Baldy at the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore is also reopening for the first time in four years on Thursday.
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Mount Baldy was closed in July 2013 after a 6-year-old boy from Illinois nearly lost his life after falling into a hole, one of many that began opening on the surface of the dune because of decaying trees.
According to the National Park Service, visitors will no longer be permitted to climb the Mount Baldy dune but weekly ranger-guided hikes to the top of the dune will be offered to visitors.
Mount Baldy will be regularly open from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m.
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