Ocean waters off Long Beach were closed to swimmers Saturday after a sewer main break, and it’s unclear when the water will be considered safe to enter.
City Health Officer Dr. Cliff Okada ordered the temporary closure of all open coastal swimming areas, including open coastal beaches and bay swimming areas and lagoons, following a sewage spill that may affect recreational water quality, the city announced.
Long Beach has more than six miles of public beach where the water quality is monitored by health officials.
About 29,000 gallons of sewage was discharged near Livingston Drive and 2nd Street beginning around 6:30 p.m. Friday, the Long Beach Utilities Department reported. The spill was caused by a break in a “force main,” a pressurized pipe used to convey wastewater across flat or upward terrain.
Long Beach Utilities rerouted the sewage flow with a bypass line and called in emergency contractor Ocean Blue to assist with spill cleanup efforts. Of the 29,000-gallon total spill volume, 15,000 gallons of sewage was recovered, and 14,000 gallons was discharged to the ocean, the city said. Repairs on the broken pipe are underway.
State law requires temporary closure and posting at beaches in these situations and “out of an abundance of caution,” the city said. The waters will remain closed to swimmers until the recreational water quality meets state requirements.
Because rain is expected this weekend, water sampling will begin Monday and continue as needed until results comply with state recreational water quality standards, the city said.
Full beach closures are rare and usually happen only during significant emergencies such as raw sewage main breaks, fire debris incidents or dangerous weather conditions including lightning strikes. Targeted bacterial warnings at certain beaches and rain advisories involving water runoff are more common.
On Friday, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health advised the public to avoid swimming, surfing, and playing in ocean waters near Ballona Creek at Dockweiler State Beach, Mother’s Beach in Marina Del Rey and near Santa Monica Pier because bacterial levels exceeded health standards.
Warnings were lifted from Malibu Point and Surfrider Beach near Malibu Tower 3 and at Avalon Beach west of the pier on Catalina Island.
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