Authorities reported that a quarter of a million gallons of wastewater overflowed into the Los Angeles River on Thursday, resulting in the closure of a seven-mile stretch of California beaches until the following week.
In a press statement, the Long Beach Department of Health and Human Services stated that the discharge was a result of a blockage leading to an overflow in the main sewer line.
Jennifer Rice Epstein, a representative for the Long Beach Department of Health and Human Services, stated in an email that they close beaches as a precautionary measure whenever there are spills and water from the LA River ends up in Long Beach.
The city of Long Beach, located in the Pacific Ocean, is connected to the Los Angeles River. The water from this river flows into the ocean, suggesting that pollution from upstream can impact the coastal waters of the city.
Epstein stated that the leak was “fairly significant” and it is likely that shorelines will remain closed until at least Wednesday of the next week.
The department stated in its press release that Dr. Anissa Davis, the Health Officer of Long Beach City, decided to shut down all coastal swimming spots in Long Beach because of the sewage overflow.
The sea water will be subjected to testing in the upcoming week, and once the department obtains two consecutive uncontaminated samples, the shorelines will be reopened.
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Bryan Langpap, a representative for the Los Angeles County Sanitation Districts, stated that a maintenance company had a sewer cleaning crew in Downey, approximately 13 miles southeast of Los Angeles.
In an interview with USA TODAY, he stated, “The machinery employed for the purpose of cleaning the sewer required insertion of certain devices directly into the sewer. This action resulted in a blockage, and the equipment that was inside the sewer experienced a malfunction. We are not completely certain about the cause of this incident.”
According to Langpap, when the sewer became clogged, the water had nowhere to go and flowed onto the street.
The group concentrated on tidying up the road from that location, and it was completely cleared by 11:20 in the morning. The local areas were informed about the problem approximately at 9:40 in the morning on Thursday and dispatched individuals to resolve the blockage and confine the wastewater, according to his statement.
Langpap mentioned that depending on what happens, sometimes the sewage drains into the river when there is a storm. However, we don’t have sewage spills on the streets during floods, so it’s great that the rainwater goes down the underground storm drains through the openings in the curb.
Nonetheless, he stated that approximately 250,000 gallons did manage to make its way into the river. Ensuring that no sewage would flow into the storm drains and subsequently, into the river, was one of the team’s main objectives.