Dublin's Liffey Swim to go ahead despite poor water quality
- Published
A swimming race in the river that runs through the Irish capital is due to go ahead in spite of concerns about the quality of the water.
The Liffey Swim in Dublin is scheduled to take place on Saturday.
The results of water samples taken from the river on Thursday and Friday showed the quality was "exceptionally poor", reports Irish national broadcaster RTÉ.
The first Liffey Swim took place in 1920 and Saturday's swim will be the 100th race.
Dublin City Council said Irish Water, the country's water utility company, was told on Friday about an overflow or discharge of sewage from the sewer network.
The council said the discharge may have been happening for days before it was rectified.
The council also said it had notified the organisers of the Liffey Swim of the water sample results.
The River Liffey is not a designated bathing water location, added the council.
It said it hoped water quality in the river would improve significantly in time for the race but no guarantees could be given.
Swim Ireland and Leinster Open Sea, the organisers of the Liffey Swim, said they were aware there was "some concern" about the quality of the water.
They said they carefully considered the information they had received and their intention was that the race "will go ahead".