Sewage Spill Closes Section of Beach

A quarter-mile section of the beach was closed Thursday after 2,000 gallons of untreated sewage from a clogged sewer pipe emptied onto the beach near Circle Drive.

The incident began about 7:30 a.m. near 7th Avenue and Coast Highway where a sewer pipe clogged by tree roots started overflowing, said Michael Dunbar, South Coast Water District general manager.

Raw sewage spilled into a storm drain and emptied at a beach area below Circle Drive, just north of 1,000 Steps County Beach.

District workers unplugged the sewer pipe and estimated that the overflow lasted about 20 minutes, Dunbar said.

After being notified, the Orange County Health Care Agency immediately closed the beach area as a precaution and posted signs warning the public of the potential hazard.

The beach will remain closed until water samples are tested, which could be in two days.

“This affects a little cove area north of 1,000 Steps beach,” said Larry Honeybourne, chief of water quality for the county’s Health Care Agency. The area affected is from Circle Drive north to Seacliff Drive.

Unlike other beach areas where sewage spills have occurred, the Laguna Beach area has limited public access. There are private homes and a large condominium complex, Laguna Lido, there, Honeybourne said.

It was the district’s second spill this year. An electrical malfunction caused 5,000 gallons of sewage to empty into Salt Creek Beach Park on June 10. The beach was reopened several days later.

During the summer, Bolsa Chica State Beach in Huntington Beach was closed for three weeks after elevated levels of bacteria were discovered and linked to a faulty underground pipe connected to the park’s restrooms.

The pipe had a series of cracks along a 2 1/2-mile stretch of beach, which was closed until the state made repairs and water sampling showed a reduction in bacteria levels.