The Florida Department of Health in Marion County has issued a health alert after dangerous blue-green algal toxins were found in Orange Lake, near McIntosh.

The public is being urged to use caution in and around Orange Lake. Marion County health officials recommend that residents and visitors take the following precautions:

Blue-green algae are a type of bacteria that is common in Florida’s freshwater environments. A bloom occurs when a rapid growth of algae leads to an accumulation of individual cells that discolor the water. Floating mats are often produced that have unpleasant odors.

Environmental factors that contribute to blue-green algae blooms are sunny days, warm water temperatures, still water conditions, and excess nutrients. Blooms can appear year-round, but they are more common in the summer and fall seasons. Many types of blue-green algae are capable of producing toxins.

In order for the health alert for Orange Lake to be lifted, negative toxin analyses must be obtained from resampling of the bloom, or 30 days must elapse since the last sampling date.

Blue-green algae blooms can impact the health of individuals and ecosystems, including fish and other aquatic animals. To learn more about the potential health effects of algal blooms, visit the Florida Department of Health’s aquatic toxins webpage.

To report an algal bloom, contact the Florida Department of Environmental Protection at 1-855-305-3903 or click here to report it online. For more information about Florida’s water quality status and public health notifications for harmful algal blooms and beach conditions, visit FDEP’s Protecting Florida Together website.

Any residents who believe their pet has become ill after consuming or having contact with blue-green algae contaminated water should contact their veterinarian.

To report symptoms from exposure to a harmful algal bloom, or any aquatic toxin, call the Florida Poison Information Center at 1-800-222-1222 to speak with a poison specialist.

To report fish kills, contact the Florida Fish and Wildlife Research Institute at 1-800-636-0511.

If anyone has additional health questions or concerns about blue-green algae blooms, contact the Florida Department of Health in Marion County via phone (352-629-0137) or email (Info.Marion@FLHealth.gov).

Ocala, Fla. — The Florida Department of Health in Marion County has issued a Health Alert for the presence of harmful blue-green algal toxins in Orange Lake, near McIntosh.

The public should exercise caution in and around Orange Lake.

Residents and visitors are advised to take the following precautions:

What is blue-green algae?

Blue-green algae are a type of bacteria that is common in Florida’s freshwater environments. A bloom occurs when rapid growth of algae leads to an accumulation of individual cells that discolor water and often produce floating mats that emit unpleasant odors.

Some environmental factors that contribute to blue-green algae blooms are sunny days, warm water temperatures, still water conditions and excess nutrients. Blooms can appear year-round but are more frequent in summer and fall. Many types of blue-green algae can produce toxins.

Is it harmful?

Blue-green algae blooms can impact human health and ecosystems, including fish and other aquatic animals.

For additional information on potential health effects of algal blooms, visit floridahealth.gov/environmental-health/aquatic-toxins.

Find current information about Florida’s water quality status and public health notifications for harmful algal blooms and beach conditions by visiting ProtectingFloridaTogether.gov. Protecting Florida Together is the state’s joint effort to provide statewide water quality information to prioritize environmental transparency and commitment to action.

What do I do if I see an algal bloom?

The Florida Department of Environmental Protection collects and analyzes algal bloom samples. To report a bloom to DEP, call the toll-free hotline at 855-305-3903 or report online at surveygizmo.com/s3/3444948/Algal-Bloom-Reporting-Form.

To report fish kills, contact the Florida Fish and Wildlife Research Institute at 1-800-636-0511.

Report symptoms from exposure to a harmful algal bloom or any aquatic toxin to the Florida Poison Information Center. Call 1-800-222-1222 to speak to a poison specialist immediately.

Contact your veterinarian if you believe your pet has become ill after consuming or having contact with blue-green algae contaminated water.

If you have other health questions or concerns about blue-green algae blooms, please contact the Florida Department of Health in Marion County at 352-629-0137, or at Info.Marion@FLHealth.gov.

Lifting the alert

A Health Alert is lifted once negative toxin analyses are obtained from DEP-coordinated resampling of the bloom, or 30 days have elapsed since the last sampling date. If a health alert has been issued, it can be rescinded at this time.

About the Florida Department of Health

The department, nationally accredited by the Public Health Accreditation Board, works to protect, promote and improve the health of all people in Florida through integrated state, county and community efforts. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter at @HealthyFla. For more information about the Florida Department of Health please visit www.FloridaHealth.gov.

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MCINTOSH, Fla. (WCJB) - Orange Lake in Mcintosh had many dead alligators, snakes, turtles and more wildlife appear on the water.

Joseph Lattin was fishing this week when he noticed a large amount of wildlife flipped over and dead in the water.

“It made me want to cry. I had never seen anything like it the sixty years I’ve been on this lake. It just didn’t make any sense” said Lattin.

The cause for their death is unknown.

Florida Fish and Wildlife workers say their staff is newly aware of the situation and are now investigating the cause.

Some residents say the sudden presence of dead wildlife causes concern.

“I come out here and catch fish all the time that aren’t for me. It’s for my mom and my dad. I am not going to feed them with dead animals and carcasses laying all around the lake” said Preston Popp.

Preston Popp is a longtime fisherman at Orange Lake and says the quality has diminished over the years.

“Thirty years ago it was just a thriving lake. And now it’s not. And I’m not going to say it’s dead because I fish it all the time and still catch fish, but I don’t want to eat them anymore” said Popp.

As well as a growing concern, there is also a growing smell where the dead wildlife is located in the lake.

Residents are hopeful that FWC will get to the bottom of it.

“Well I hope it’s true what they say when they do an investigation. Looking at the alligators and doing an autopsy on them to find out what it really is” said Lattin.

FWC says if anyone sees more dead wildlife in the lake, to report it to their Fish Kill hotline at (800)636-0511.

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Hot, muggy, sizzling summer weather makes for uncomfortable mid-day fishing anywhere in America. But in Florida, daylight fishing can be downright hazardous to your health.

Bass anglers especially have it tough. Anyone who hasn’t cast plugs all day on an inland lake or river far from the cooling breezes of the coast, has no idea what “the dog days of summer” are really all about in the South.

“Staying cool” is one of the major reasons many Florida bass anglers fish at night. Another reason is that frequently the largemouth action is better.

While all bass lakes and rivers occasionally can give up heavy catches of largemouths at night, a number of North Florida waters have well-known reputations for being prime “night spots.” As a general rule, most of the best “night lakes” are ones that are clear or have a lot of daytime boat traffic.

Clear waters have such deep penetrating sunlight that bass generally are not on the prowl unless the sun is low on the horizon. It’s important to remember that since bass don’t have eyelids, they are extremely light sensitive. So the only way for them to escape the sun’s burning rays is to stay deep or bury themselves in vegetation. But when the sun sets, they migrate shallow to forage.

Waters with heavy boat traffic also shine as night fishing spots, but for a different reason. A steady stream of boats and water-skiers will “put down” bass in quick order, even on dark, tannin-stained lakes and rivers. Such lakes may offer good mid-day fishing in late fall, winter and early spring when boat traffic is less. But when the summer boating brigades swarm, bass action is best had under the cover of darkness.

One of the best and most fertile “night lakes” in Florida is Rodman Reservoir, located south of the town of Interlachen. Rodman can be gin-clear, it’s deep, and it’s jammed with weeds and flooded timber. All of that makes for difficult fishing, and night angling on the big lake can be dangerous unless it’s worked with great care.

Live shiners probably account for 80 percent of Rodman’s big bass, but at night heavyweight fish readily can be taken with top-water plugs, weedless soft plastic frogs, slowly fished buzz-baits and plastic worms. The stump flats near the dam and along the old barge canal are prime after-hours bass waters.

Although not particularly clear, nor having excessive boat traffic, Santa Fe Lake, near the town of Waldo, is an outstanding night bass lake, with a good reputation among local anglers for giving up heavyweight largemouths when the summer sun sets. Lots of bigmouths in the 8- to 10-pound class are caught from Santa Fe every year, and a good number are hooked at night. The west side of the lake is a well-known spring bass bedding area, but it also produces good catches of bigmouths at night. A sandbar rings much of the lake. It’s in about eight feet of water, with the shore side dropping to about 12 feet, the open lake side falling off to 30 feet. Many of the biggest bass are caught near the sandbar drop-offs, even at night. Bottom-bumping plugs, live shiners and plastic worms score well.

Near Ocala is another outstanding night bass spot, 5,600-acre Lake Weir. It’s heavily boated during summer, but it’s deep, has abundant shoreline weed beds, state-managed fish attractors (reefs) and harbors big numbers of pot-bellied largemouths. The lake record is 16-pounds, 1-ounce, but lots of 8- to 10-pound class fish are caught annually. Weir has excellent bottom structures, with long sandbar points tapering to 20 feet of water. But the bulk of the bass caught at night are taken around shoreline grass beds. Deep holes in or near the grass are prime nighttime bass spots. The buoy-marked fish attractors put out by the Florida Game and Fresh Water Fish Commission also yield good numbers of night bass.

Many Florida anglers know that Orange Lake, southeast of Gainesville, is an outstanding largemouth spot. They also know that in summer the lake can have hydrilla weed problems. But this year due to abundant rain, lake levels are up, and getting around and fishing Orange has been better than in recent years.

Orange’s clear waters offer some of the best, most consistent, summer night action from largemouths of any lake in Florida. Lots of bigmouths in the 4 to 7 pound range are caught each summer. Prime Orange Lake bass spots include: the mouth of Cross Creek; the north end around the islands; Grassy Point, located about a mile north of Cross Creek; the east shore; around McCormack and McIntosh islands; and at the south end near P.G. Run.

The spring runs feeding the west shore of Lake George, near the town of Salt Springs are well-known night bass hot spots. Salt Springs, Silver Glen Springs and Juniper Springs runs are as clear as a martini, and annually give up bigmouths well over 12-pounds. The runs also can be tops for striped bass and bream night fishing.

There are hundreds of other waters scattered throughout North Florida that can have top-notch night bass fishing. Some include: Ocean Pond and Palestine Lake, near the north Florida town of Olustee; Kingsley, Magnolia and Lowry lakes in Clay County’s Camp Blanding; and many small (some even unnamed) waters around the towns of Live Oak, Melrose, Keystone Heights and Leesburg. Many of the clear rivers along the state’s west coast also can yield good catches of bass at night.

Almost any Florida waterway that’s clear, or is heavily-boated, and has a good bass population, will give up more and bigger summer largemouths at night. If your favorite bass spot has turned off during the dog days, try working it at night.

You may never fish it again after the rooster crows.

You can reach Bob McNally at bob@mcnallyoutdoors.com.

Orlando, Fla., Aug. 15, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) --

Orange Lake Country Club, Inc., one of the largest and most popular vacation ownership companies in the U.S., today announced that it is changing its name to Holiday Inn Club Vacations Incorporated to align with its rapidly growing vacation ownership brand.

“My father, Kemmons Wilson, helped define the family vacation with the launch of the first Holiday Inn® more than 60 years ago,” said Holiday Inn Club Vacations Incorporated Chairman Spence Wilson, Sr. “A closer association of our vacation ownership business with the iconic Holiday Inn® brand and his legacy of creating memorable family travel experiences best positions our company for future growth, exciting partnerships and innovative programs.”

The corporate name change culminates several developments the company has been pursuing to capitalize on growth in the timeshare industry and its own trajectory of phenomenal expansion, which has more than doubled its membership in the last 10 years. Holiday Inn Club Vacations Incorporated is consistently delivering on its goals to grow its members, resorts, guest satisfaction and people.

In line with its growth strategies, the company recently announced a 100-year extension of its strategic alliance with IHG®, one of the world’s leading hotel companies, which provides exclusive rights to market and sell vacation ownership under the Holiday Inn Club Vacations® brand worldwide and paves the way for global vacation ownership expansion.

Errol Williams, Global Brand Vice President, Holiday Inn, IHG, said: “We’re proud of our partnership with Holiday Inn Club Vacations Incorporated, and, together, we’ll continue to deliver on the Holiday Inn Brand family’s legacy of warm, welcoming hospitality. This 100-year extension ensures that vacationers will enjoy the Holiday Inn experience in wonderful locations for years to come.”

“Our sights are set on becoming the most loved brand in family travel, building on the incredible legacy of our Holiday Inn heritage,” said Holiday Inn Club Vacations Incorporated President and CEO Tom Nelson. “Aligning our consumer brand and corporate name sets us up for success by leveraging the amazing strength of the Holiday Inn brand family, which represents IHG’s largest footprint and growth engine.”

Other recent milestones for the company include securing minority investment by KSL Capital Partners to provide additional resources for expansion, the addition of key properties in New Orleans and the Lake Tahoe area, and the opening of a new corporate headquarters on its Orlando campus to support a culture of high performance, collaboration and empowerment.

Holiday Inn Club Vacations has more than 350,000 owners worldwide and 28 resort properties in many of the top vacation destinations in the country.

About Holiday Inn Club Vacations Incorporated

Holiday Inn Club Vacations Incorporated encompasses 28 resorts and 7,600 villas in the U.S., with more than 350,000 timeshare owners and 5,000+ employees. Established by Holiday Inn® founder Kemmons Wilson, the Company has been a leader in the vacation ownership industry since 1982, when it opened its flagship Holiday Inn Club Vacations® Orange Lake Resort in Orlando, Fla., located next to the Walt Disney World® Resort. Holiday Inn Club Vacations Incorporated licenses the Holiday Inn Club Vacations® brand from IHG, International under a strategic alliance agreement since 2008.

            Ashley FraboniHoliday Inn Club Vacations407-315-8866afraboni@holidayinnclub.com