Another sewage spill has closed beaches in Orange County. According to officials from the Orange County Health Care Agency, a blocked sewer line at a Newport Bay restaurant was the cause of this spill. Somewhere between 35,000 and 50,000 gallons of untreated sewage leaked from the sewer line into the ocean nearby.
This is not the first time the ocean in that area has been fouled by raw sewage, nor will it be the last. Just a few months ago, in fact, millions of gallons of sewage spilled from a Carson sewage main, sending a torrent of polluted water through streets and into the Los Angeles harbor. That particular spill prompted officials to close a stretch of beaches from Huntington in the south, to Rancho Palos Verdes in the north.
Before that, in July of 2021, the Hyperion Water Reclamation Plant spilled some 17 million gallons into the waters off L.A., closing beaches from El Segundo north to Dockweiler RV Park.
The most recent spill has closed the beaches near the west end of Newport Bay. Officials will test the waters in the near future to determine whether it’s safe to open them back up to swimming, diving, and surfing.
