This is the moment the water on a popular tourist beach turned green yesterday (August 6).<br /><br />Visitors were stunned when the ocean at Jomtien beach in Pattaya, Chonburi Thailand, turned dark green.<br /><br />Officials banned anyone from swimming and closed off the area while they investigated the suspected algal bloom. <br /><br />They said that warm weather and heavy rain could have caused the sudden growth in sea plankton.<br /><br />The local businesswoman Sirilak Sripiris, 55, said: "This phenomenon happens all the time when there's a big storm.<br /><br />"Luckily, tourists seem to understand the problem. While they cannot enter the water they can still enjoy sitting by the beach."<br /><br />Government officials said the entire stretch of beach was affected and they blamed a recent storm for the sudden algal bloom. <br /><br />They said the green growths would be washed away within a few days and the colour will be returning to normal.
