One of Auckland’s most popular swimming beaches is off limits today after wastewater overflow was detected.

The black flag - meaning there’s a very high illness risk from swimming - was figuratively raised last night at both the Takapuna and Takapuna North Beaches due to the issue.

“You won’t see black flags at the beach - instead the black flag is listed on the Safeswim website. Please check the site before swimming at any Auckland beach or bay,” Watercare told members of the Takapuna, Milford & Nearby NZ Facebook group.

The news comes as school students head into the first week of the Term 3 holidays tomorrow.

Herne Bay, Home Bay and Judges Bay are also off limits with a black flag in effect.

Last December, more than 20 Auckland beaches became unsafe after a deluge washed sewage, including human faeces, into the sea.

The Safeswim website had black-flagged popular beaches including Mission Bay, Kohimarama, Cheltenham, Milford and Mellons Bay.

Safeswim said at the time the levels of faecal bacteria had breached national guidelines for swimming and posed a high risk to anyone getting in the water.

That incident came three months after a sinkhole opened in Parnell, causing wastewater to overflow into the Waitematā Harbour, closing many of the city’s inner-harbour beaches for weeks.

The 13m-deep hole was caused by a collapsed brick pipe below a private property on St Georges Bay Rd in Parnell that served central and West Auckland.

Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown said decades of underinvestment resulted in the overflow.

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