Researchers have discovered a virus that causes COVID-19 on four Duluth beaches this month.

Water samples found “detectable levels” of the virus on water in the area’s beaches during the weeks of September 11th and 18th, including 13th Street Beach / Franklin Park, Life Erickson Park, 42nd Avenue Beach and Brighton Beach. University of Minnesota Medical School, Duluth Campus, which regularly tests lake water on eight area beaches.

The results showed levels of the virus at 100 to 1,000 copies per liter, 10,000 times lower than those found in wastewater, the medical school said. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention “is not aware of any scientific reports indicating that the virus is transmitted to humans through exposure to lake water,” the medical school added.

“At this time, the source of the virus is unknown. Because of this, the Minnesota Sea Grant will increase funding to continue monitoring medical schools on eight Duluth beaches,” the medical school told the News Tribune in a statement. . “They will also work with lake flow experts and the Minnesota Department of Health to get more information on potential sources.”

The medical school urged people on the beach to continue wearing masks and social distance.

According to a News Tribune report last month, researchers at the University of Minnesota Medical School’s Duluth campus are regularly checking the water on the beach for the weekend. Since the virus flows into a person’s stool, it is more likely to rinse from the swimmer’s body.

Researchers – assistant professors Richard Melvin and Glenn Simmons Jr. – are also studying the presence of the virus in raw sewers in Minnesota in hopes of determining how many people in the community may have the disease based on the amount of virus in the sample.

Sewage research has found signs of an early epidemic outbreak and it is being seen in increasing cases across the state.

Sewage disposal samples are also being taken at the University of Minnesota’s Twin Cities and Duluth campuses.