Southsea swimmer contracts Hepatitis A - and believes poor water quality at seafront is to blame

Mental health professional Hannah Murray has been swimming two or three times a week between Southsea and Eastney every week, before she fell ill in June last year. When her condition worsened over Christmas, she went to the emergency department and was diagnosed with Hepatitis A.

Hannah, 38, says there is ‘nowhere else’ she could have picked up the rare illness from – although this has been disputed by Southern Water.

SEE ALSO: Huge blaze at Portsmouth historic pub The Ship Anson caused by discarded cigarette, according to landlord

Now, she’s calling for greater awareness and transparency on water quality from the company and city council, so that others don’t suffer the same fate.

‘The infection has been awful,’ the Southsea woman said. ‘I have been vomiting so much and have felt like I’ve had no energy whatsoever. I’m lucky that I went to my GP and we caught it so early, which means it can be treated. But my diet is clean and there’s nothing else I do that could have caused my to pick this up, so there’s nowhere else this could have come from but the open water.

‘It’s a shame because it’s a huge passion of mine and great for mental wellbeing – I’ve previously encouraged my clients to take it up, but how can I do that when I’ve ended up like this.’

Southern Water is responsible for wastewater services from Hampshire to Kent and, according to Environment Agency data, pumped sewage into Langstone Harbour for almost 900 hours in 2021.

In the same year the water company was also hit with a record £90m fine after admitting to 6,971 incidents of illegal sewage dumping from 17 sites, including in Hampshire, between 2010 and 2015.

Hannah says she has been reading up on Southern Water and ‘appreciates’ that there have to be stormwater discharges while the firm invests into infrastructure improvements. However, she believes there should be more immediate communication between Southern Water and Portsmouth City Council, to close bathing waters if they are not safe, for the sake of people swimming in the water.

She said: ‘I’m receiving treatment now and will get better, but there are plenty of other swimmers who are much older than I am. If they have underlying health conditions and they caught it themselves, they might not be so fortunate.

‘At the moment we have to make the decision for ourselves, and if this is in the water then it could genuinely kill somebody.

‘Reading about it in The News, it’s clear that this sort of thing has been going on for a number of years now. I know they [Southern Water] are making changes but at the moment it just seems to get worse and worse.

‘It has certainly put me off of swimming in open waters, which is such a shame given all the benefits that it can have. But even though swimming pools are not even close to the real thing, if I want to prevent this from happening again then I feel like I have no alternative but to go there instead.’

SEE ALSO: Portsmouth Waterstones silent as one man queues up to buy Prince Harry's new book Spare - but not for himself

Based on water samples taken between 2018 and 2022, the water quality in Southsea has been deemed as ‘sufficient’, say Southern Water.

A full investigation into the seafront’s bathing water profile, carried out by the Environment Agency, also indicated that pollution entering the bathing waters at low tide was likely coming through groundwater to the west of the pier, rather than Southern Water’s discharge point in Langstone Harbour.

According to the NHS, Hepatitis A is spread through faecal matter, and is often ingested through food or drink. Cary James, chief executive of the World Hepatitis Alliance, says ingesting it while swimming in open waters is more than plausible.

He said: ‘We know the Hepatitis A virus can spread through ingesting food or water that is contaminated. The overflowing discharge in the area could lead to the water to become contaminated and cause the spread of infection.

‘Unlike Hepatitis B and C, Hepatitis A does not cause chronic liver disease but it can cause debilitating symptoms such as fever, malaise, loss of appetite, diarrhoea, nausea, abdominal discomfort, dark-coloured urine and jaundice. People can be immunised against Hepatitis A and those who feel they may be exposed in their community should consult with their local healthcare practitioner. The good news is that most people will make a full recovery.’

Discussions have been taking place between Southern Water and Portsmouth City Council for interactive boards to display water quality information in real-time along the seafront.

The signs, which would be installed by the city council, would provide a digital version of Southern Water’s Beachbuoy app – which shows when discharge activity is taking place, and where.

A spokesman for Southern Water said: ‘We are sorry to hear of a member of the public being unwell. Southern Water is one of many custodians of bathing water quality along our region’s coastlines, and we continue to work closely with a range of other partners, including local authorities, the agricultural sector and wider public, to enhance and protect our environment.

‘For example, we are talking to Portsmouth City Council about the installation of education signs along the seafront, and are leading the water industry in seeking innovative solutions to storm overflows. Meanwhile, residents can use our Beachbuoy app which offers near-live updates on any activity which could impact bathing water quality.’