'Cross fingers and shower well': Too hot for swimmers to resist contaminated beach

People are still swimming at a popular Auckland beach despite signs warning the water is contaminated.

Beach-goers at Milford told the Herald yesterday that the scorching temperatures meant it was too hard to stay away.

One woman said she would rather just "cross her fingers and shower well" after taking a dip.

Signs were up at the North Shore beach, and no-swim warning on the council's Safeswim website, after a broken wastewater pipe yesterday spilled raw sewage - including faecal matter - into nearby stormwater drains.

Thirteen properties were also affected.

Residents of two homes were so badly affected, they've had to spend the night away from their wastewater-logged properties.

Many Aucklanders will also be heading to the beach for a scorcher public holiday today.

It is expected to reach a high of 29C.

Watercare acting chief operations officer Mark Bourne said tomorrow morning was likely to be the earliest the beach would be officially open.

He said the normal advice was to wait 48 hours after an overflow - but that decision was ultimately up to Auckland Council experts.

The pipe has been fixed but there was still plenty of work to do. he said.

Workers were back decontaminating homes this morning.

A local group said the council needed to send a stronger message on contaminated water.

Milford Residents Association co-chair Norma Bott said the warnings didn't relay the gravity of the situation.

She said there were just two signs on the beach, and none at the entrance to the creek where the contaminated water was flowing from.