A state park in Beaver County had an unexpected announcement for visitors Thursday, and a popular swimming destination will be shut down for the foreseeable future.

Raccoon Creek State Park has closed off the lake section of Raccoon Creek Beach until further notice due to elevated levels of E. coli bacteria in the water. The park  that it does not release the results of its testing publicly, but it follows Pennsylvania Department of Health standards. 

When visitors arrived at the park, they found signs saying "closed, no swimming," but no explanation had been provided. Once they learned about the elevated levels of E. coli, they were disappointed.

"I've heard about how great this park is, and I just get to be disappointed when I show up," says Brandon Singh, who drove to the park from Maryland. "They won't even let me swim."

Dina Kovaleva lives in Beaver and she was hoping to bring her children to swim in the lake.

"I heard it's a beautiful place for kids to swim, and we came here for the first time, and it's closed," Kovaleva said. "I don't want my kids to get sick. So, yes, I think it's good that they closed it, but it would be nice to know why it's closed."

David Flores agrees that it's good the lake is closed because of safety for children, but he also said he wouldn't let it ruin the whole trip.

"I guess things happen," Flores said. "But we're enjoying nature, so that's good. Yes, it was really disappointing, but as long as everything else is open, we're fine."

The park says once the E. coli levels drop, it will let everyone know when it's safe to get back in the water. Public swimming waters are regularly checked for E. coli as a marker of cleanliness.

• Beaver County