Areas west of us had a LOT of rain (like 20+ inches) a few weeks ago and serious flooding- definitely not something that happens a lot here. We have lived here 5 years and have not experienced a water health advisory either (although we did stay out of the water most of the summer after the BP spill).
As usual timing is everything, and I am sad that this water quality advisory happened during the busy tourist season (along with TS Debby- when it rains it pours). Remember that so many inland rivers, lakes, streams, and creeks are terribly dirty- and many are swimming, boating, and playing in them too. I am still stunned that people even touch a toe in the Ohio River, and thankfully there is an effort to clean up the waterways in the Louisville Parks system, but their water quality issues are bad every single day and have been for years. As populations increase, and the infrastructure does not keep up (in this case sewer systems/storm runoff, enforcing pollution rules on manufacturing and setting higher standards, and enforcing rules on individuals whose homes are contributing to the mess),we are going to see more and more of this. The Panhandle has a lot of people now- it all has to go somewhere. Even if you are not an enviro nut, you do have to agree that swimming in dirty water is really not cool- and you need to look at the reasons why it is dirty.