San Fernando Valley : South Bay : Bacteria Flushed Out of Cities’ Tap Water

Hermosa Beach and Redondo Beach residents who complained about chlorine in tap water can expect an improvement in their drinking water’s smell and taste, water company officials said.

Chlorine was added to the drinking water after an excess of coliform bacteria was discovered in September’s monitoring. The six-day chlorination process, which is used to flush out the bacteria, ended last week.

Levels of coliform reached 6.2% in the Hermosa-Redondo water system, said Ray Taylor, vice president of California Water Service, the water supplier for the Hermosa and Redondo Beach areas. Though the amount of total coliform bacteria exceeded the state standard, which allows for a 5% coliform level in the monthly water sample collected for testing, the water never became harmful to drink, Taylor said.