Three Durban beaches reopened on Saturday after levels of E. coli improved “tremendously”.

eThekwini Municipality spokesperson Msawakhe Mayisela said Addington, South and Ushaka beaches were now safe for bathing and other sporting activities.

“North, Bay of Plenty and Blue Lagoon beaches remain closed and teams continue to work tirelessly to have these, too, reopened soon. Beaches north of the Umgeni River that were affected by the UPL chemical spillage, are still closed,” he said.

The city announced on Thursday that central beaches were closed for bathing and any other sporting activity, with immediate effect.

It said the decision was in the interest of the safety of residents and tourists after signs of beyond normal E. coli levels in the water.

“The city moved with speed to conduct tests after seeing murky waters in some beaches and results showed a positive presence of these bacteria,” Mayisela said at the time.

“Teams are currently hard at work on a malfunctioning sewer pump station that is constantly vandalised for scrap metals and work is at an advanced stage to remedy the situation.”

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