Seal Beach Coast Reopens After Sewage Spill Closure

Seal Beach has reopened a three-quarter-mile stretch of coastline that was closed through the weekend because of raw-sewage contamination.

Health officials tested water Saturday through Monday and said bacteria levels were safe for a Tuesday opening.

Last week’s 50,000-gallon sewage spill sullied Seal Beach waters, and the Orange County Health Care Agency ordered the seashore closed--the fourth such incident for the city this year. Orange County has had 25 beach closures this year, three more than for all of 1999.

In Seal Beach, lifeguards had posted warning signs from the San Gabriel River mouth to the city pier in the wake of the spill, which was caused by a blocked sewer line in La Habra. The pollution traveled downstream, eventually draining into the ocean.

Officials with the Orange County Sanitation District said their agency was at fault. A contractor failed to activate two main sewer lines Friday morning, which meant that one pipe, which also had been clogged by a board, overloaded, said Monica Mazur, spokeswoman for the Orange County Health Care Agency.

Blake Anderson, the agency’s general manager, apologized to the City Council on Monday.

That did not allay city officials’ irritation. “It is frustrating to see the beach closed, especially since this isn’t the only time,” Councilman John Larson said Wednesday. “The businesses suffer.”

During the weekend, parking spaces at the beach stood empty, and some shops reported a 45% drop in business. Officials said the beach draws as many as 10,000 visitors on a typical summer weekend day.