500 Gallons of Oil Leaked by Pipeline

A leaking pipeline sent an estimated 500 gallons of oil into the sewers and streets of Huntington Beach early Friday. Some of the fuel ran down to the beach, where it was quickly contained, officials said.

The leak was discovered about 7:15 a.m., and by 10:30 a.m. it had spread through storm drains as far as 22nd Street and Beach Boulevard. The source of the leak was determined to be a pipe on Yorktown Avenue between Lake Street and Beach Boulevard.

Martha Werth, spokeswoman for the Huntington Beach Fire Department, said the leak was pinpointed and contained about noon and that a small amount of oil had made its way to the beach at the 22nd Street outfall.

“They found some oil, not in the ocean but on the sand,” Werth said. “They sent it out to a lab for analysis.”

By Friday afternoon, Werth said Chevron “had assumed responsibility” for the leaking pipes.

Werth said the early morning drizzle and street water from rain Thursday night helped spread the leaking oil.

Eric Gallett, of the U.S. Coast Guard, said that small amounts of oil had leaked into the ocean at the 22nd Street outfall and that Coast Guard crews were building a dam in the area to trap the oil.