State imposes restrictions on Hugh Butler Lake

Just when fishermen and outdoor enthusiasts could again start enjoying Enders Reservoir, the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission has restricted activities at Hugh Butler Lake.

According to the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, the lake north of McCook has tested positive for high levels of blue green algae, which contain toxins.

Algae levels in Enders, meanwhile, have abated enough that restricts have been lifted.

Any body contact with water the water in Hugh Butler Lake has been banned. Fishing is still allowed, but the department recommends that all fish be released.

Swimming, water skiing and other full body contact with water had already been banned by the state Department of Environmental Quality at several other lakes with high levels of the algae.

Toxins found in the algae can cause itchiness, rashes and skin ulcers. Swallowing the water can cause head-aches, nausea, abdominal pain, seizures, liver failure, respiratory arrest and even death.

The toxins break down naturally, often within a week or two after the blue-green algae bloom has subsided.

However, algae blooms can occur again at any point.

Drought is thought to have helped trigger unusual blooms of toxic algae in several Nebraska lakes that have sickened people and killed dogs.

In addition, several years of dry conditions in eastern Nebraska were followed this spring and summer by large amounts of rain and cloudy conditions, allowing some strains of the algae to rise to the top of the water and become a more dominant force, officials said.

State officials first noticed the toxic algae problem in May when three dogs died after drinking water out of Buccaneer Bay Lake -- a residential lake development near Plattsmouth.

Around May 15, two dogs died after drinking water from Hanson Lake 2, in Sarpy County.