Lawsuit Filed Against City in Big Sewage Spill

A man has filed a lawsuit against the city of San Diego, claiming he became ill from diving near a sewage disposal pipe that had ruptured.

The legal action on behalf of Donald M. Pirog, 44, of San Diego, is the first lawsuit stemming from a February rupture of the 2.2-mile pipeline, which sent about 181 million gallons of partially treated effluent into shallow coastal waters off Point Loma each day for two months.

Pirog’s lawsuit, which seeks at least $3 million in damages, alleges he was exposed to toxic-laden sewage without warning because of a leak in the pipe as early as last October.

Lawyer John Learnard, who represents Pirog, says effluent that leaked even before February’s pipe rupture caused Pirog to contract a lung disease that almost killed him and prevents him from earning a living by diving.

“When he was diving, there was a black cloud coming down and he didn’t know what it was at the time,” Learnard said.

The cause of the February rupture hasn’t been explained yet. About 80% of the solids had been removed from the sewage at the Point Loma Wastewater Treatment Plant before the effluent entered the pipe, which normally dumps effluent 2.2 miles offshore on the ocean floor.

Effluent that leaked contained potential disease-causing bacteria and viruses, solid particles and toxic pollutants, causing the closure of a four-mile stretch of coast for two months and a four-month quarantine on fishing in a kelp bed.

Chief Deputy City Atty. Ted Bromfield said he believes there were no structural leaks from the pipe before the February break.

Alan Langworthy, deputy director of the Water Utilities Department, said the city tests weekly for sewage-related bacteria at eight sites and at various depths in the Point Loma kelp beds.

“Had there been any kind of a leak or rupture in that pipe in advance of that first week of February, it certainly would have shown up (but did not) in that analysis,” Langworthy said.

A total of 31 claims have been filed against the city in connection with the rupture. Most claims were filed by divers and fishermen seeking reimbursement for income lost because of the quarantine, said city claims assistance manager Julian Johnson.

One scuba diver filed a claim alleging that he inadvertently swallowed some of the spilled sewage. The city has denied or will deny all 31 claims by not acting on them within 45 days, Johnson said.

Denying those claims clears the way for lawsuits to be filed.

After the rupture was detected, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and state Regional Water Quality Control Board ordered the city to monitor the impact on the ocean. The city spent about $200,000 on laboratory work and scientific studies to determine where ocean currents were carrying the plume of sewage.