Several beaches in the Los Angeles area were shut down on Tuesday after almost 2.5 million gallons (9.5 million liters) of sewage spilled out from a ruptured line, officials said.
Advertisement
Paddling out at Huntington Beach, Seal Beach, Sunset Beach or Palos Verdes is probably inadvisable until authorities confirm a massive sewage spill in the Los Angeles River hasn’t tained the water.
More than 2.4 million gallons have spilled from the pipe, according to the Los Angeles Department of Public Works, but officials said the sewage was continuing to flow while emergency repairs were being conducted. Flags and warning signs lined the beaches to warn visitors of possible contamination.
Beaches in Long Beach and Seal Beach were closed to swimmers and waders until at least Wednesday while health officials tested the waters for bacteria to determine whether it was safe.
“Typically with a sewage spill it would be a lot higher, but we did sample fairly early in the morning yesterday”, Allen said.
“This initial round of testing looks really good, for the most part”.
The spill – described by one health official as the biggest in recent memory – began Monday afternoon, when the top of a sewer pipe collapsed, sending debris into the pipe and causing overflow.
“Nobody went out”, owner Michael Pless said.
The cause of the collapse wasn’t clear.
Nelson Kerr, manager of Long Beach’s Bureau of Environmental Health, said initial test samples came back clean Tuesday, but a second set was taken to verify that the waters were safe.
Stay on topic – This helps keep the thread focused on the discussion at hand.
Advertisement
Be Civil – It’s OK to have a difference in opinion but there’s no need to be a jerk.
