Some Southern California beaches have lifted fire-debris- and sewage-related closures and advisories, while the arrival of a major storm is shutting down access to the water at other shorelines from Ventura to San Diego counties.
Ventura County’s Resource Management Agency announced Wednesday afternoon that visitors were advised to avoid the water at Promenade Park Beach at Figueroa Street in Ventura and Channel Island Harbor Beach Park’s Kiddie Beach in Oxnard.
The agency’s decision was made after both beaches failed to meet state standards for bacteria from water sampled.
Warning signs have been posted at the beaches, advising the public to avoid going into the water until sampling provides proof that bacteria levels have been reduced.
Some Ventura County beaches were closed Friday after 80,000 gallons of sewage were accidentally discharged into the ocean outside an Oxnard wastewater treatment plant.
Port Hueneme Beach Park and Ormond Beach in Oxnard were closed that day over concern the raw sewage may have contained microorganisms that cause disease.
Samples collected Monday showed that the beaches meet state bacteria standards, and they were reopened Tuesday.
Although all but two beaches were cleared of bacteria warnings, the agency still advised the public to avoid all county beaches because of the rain hitting the area.
This latest storm battering Southern California is expected drop up to 3 inches of rain across much of Los Angeles, Ventura and Santa Barbara counties. And 3 to 6 inches are predicted for the mountains.
“There is a potential for stormwater runoff to carry disease-causing bacteria to the beaches and into the ocean water,” the Resource Management Agency said.
There was also concern that stormwater runoff can transport hazards such as partially submerged tree limbs and logs that could cause serious injuries.
The advisory is in effect until 72 hours after the end of the rain, the agency said.
Long Beach’s Bureau of Environmental Health, which monitors that city’s recreational water, issued a rain advisory for the city’s seven miles of beach.
Residents and visitors are urged to avoid contact with the water for 72 hours after the rainfall ends. The city’s public health department noted that bacteria levels rise significantly during and after rainstorms.
The Los Angeles County Public Health Department issued an advisory Wednesday afternoon, asking residents to avoid all beaches and water, particularly storm drains, creeks, and rivers because of potentially higher bacteria levels in these areas. Some runoff may flow onto ponds on the beach sand.
This advisory is effect until at least Monday at 11 a.m.
Previous debris advisories for beaches surrounding Las Flores and Santa Monica beaches had been cleared. That included access from Malibu’s Surfider Beach to Las Flores and from Santa Monica State Beach to Dockweiler State Beach at World Way in Playa del Rey.
The health department’s decision had come as recent sampling results “did not indicate ocean impacts that pose a human health risk.” But the latest storm prompted the county to issue a new advisory, warning that beachgoers can become ill if they come in contact with the water.
Orange County’s Health Care Agency reported that no ocean, harbor or bay water closures were in effect as of Wednesday afternoon.
Although northern San Diego County has no beach restrictions, the same could not be said for central or southern beaches.
La Jolla Cove has been under an advisory since Jan. 31 due to bacteria levels exceeding state safety standards. Coronado Shoreline was also put on an advisory due to bacteria since Monday.
La Jolla’s Children’s Pool has the same bacteria level advisory, though that beach has been under the same warning since September 1997.
The advisories warn visitors to avoid entering the water.
Imperial Beach’s shorelines and Coronado’s Silver Strand shoreline remain closed because of bacteria levels, and San Diego Bay to Point Loma was closed Wednesday morning shortly after a Navy jet crashed nearby.
The ocean shoreline near Tijuana, which includes Border Field State Park and Tijuana Slough National Wildlife Refuge, has been closed since December 2021 because of cross-boundary contamination.
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