Hawthorne Says It Has Flushed Worms From Water System : Services: City drains five reservoirs to get rid of pests that officials say posed no health risk. It asks residents to run their taps--just in case.

Hawthorne’s water supply is worm-free, city officials say, but they have asked residents to flush out their taps as a precaution against any stragglers remaining in the pipes.

City officials began purging the municipal water system late last month after several residents discovered bloodworms--some as long as an inch--in their water glasses and bathtubs.

The creatures were “an aesthetic problem,” but posed no health risks, Hawthorne spokesman Tom Quintana said.

To clear up the infestation, city officials drained each of the city’s five reservoirs, which hold 1.8 million gallons of water apiece, as well as the mains. They disinfected the water treatment center and even opened up the city’s fire hydrants.

“We feel bad it happened,” Quintana said. “We want to try to regain the confidence of our public. Let’s face it, it’s shaken. So we’re going to work hard to earn back that trust.”

Officials still do not know how the city’s five water reservoirs became infested with the scarlet creatures. They suspect that the reservoirs were improperly covered, allowing midges, gnat-like insects, to lay eggs on the water’s surface. The bloodworms, which are the larva of midges, hatched from the eggs.

Water Department workers have been going door-to-door asking customers to run their cold water taps, after removing their filters, for about 20 minutes. Residents who are not home when city workers visit have been receiving doorknob hangers in Spanish and English telling them how to get rid of the pests.

City officials estimate the infestation cost the city at least $15,000--the value of the tainted water that was dumped, Quintana said. The city is also offering water users one-time rebates to compensate them for the costs of running their taps to clear out the worms.

The Hawthorne Water Department provides water to about half of the city’s 12,000 residential and business water customers.

The worm infestation did not affect Southern California Water Co., which supplies water to most of the city’s remaining customers. But the company received so many calls from residents that it sent a letter on Oct. 1 assuring customers that their water was worm-free.

The crisis prompted help from officials at 99 Cents Only stores, who started offering Hawthorne residents a free gallon of water when news of the infestation broke late last month.

The chain, which has three discount general merchandise stores in the area, has given away 5,000 gallons of water since Sept. 24, operations manager Eric Schiffer said. The offer is expected to expire Sunday.

“The city has always been good to us. It has some of the best customers we have,” Schiffer said. “So when we saw that lady on the news saying (the worms) were coming out of her toothbrush, we said, ‘That’s terrible!’ and decided to do something.”