10,000 Gallons of Chemical Spills Into Newport Bay
Two spills of a green chemical substance totaling about 10,000 gallons poured into Upper Newport Bay from San Diego Creek Sunday, posing a possible threat to wildlife and forcing swimmers out of the water for a time.
Lt. Col. Bobbi Weinberger of the Marine Corps helicopter air station in Tustin said part of the spill originated there, and identified the liquid as a solvent used to clean helicopters.
Origin of the other part of the spill was still under investigation.
Late in the afternoon the U.S. Coast Guard assumed command of cleanup operations and retained a private firm based in Wilmington to handle the operation. By 8:30 p.m. a spokesman for the Orange County Fire Department said the entire spill had been cleaned up.
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