Lifeguards are continuing to warn residents about elevated bacteria levels at some L.A. County beaches after the Hyperion Water Reclamation Plant in El Segundo released untreated sewage into the ocean earlier this month.
On Friday, the L.A. County Department of Public Health announced that water samplings from Thursday showed that beach areas near the Hyperion plant “continued to exceed state standards for bacteria in water.”
Reports of elevated bacterial levels came more than two weeks after raw sewage inundated the Hyperion plant and triggered an emergency discharge of more than 17 million gallons of debris into the ocean on July 11 and 12.
While county health officials on Wednesday said that no sewage is currently being discharged from the Hyperion plant into the ocean, the L.A. Times reported on Friday that the plant was still dumping sewage into the Pacific Ocean.
Affected beach areas still exceeding state standards include:
- Venice
- Topsail Street extension
- Dockweiler State Beach
- Ballona Creek (Near Dockweiler Tower 40)
- Culver Blvd storm drain
- Hyperion Plant outfall
- Imperial Highway storm drain (Dockweiler Tower 56)
- Westchester storm drain
- World Way extension
County health officials noted that the following beaches are still under advisories due to the “day-to-day fluctuations in ocean water bacteria levels.” However, officials noted that there was “no reason to suspect these increases in beach water bacteria are due to the recent sewage discharge at Hyperion.”
- Avalon Beach at Catalina Island (50 feet east of the pier)
- Pico-Kenter storm drain (Santa Monica Beach)
- Topanga Canyon Beach in Malibu
Meanwhile, warnings have been lifted at the following beach areas after recent sampling found that water quality standards fell within the state’s guidelines.
- El Segundo Beach – Grand Avenue storm drain (Near Dockweiler Tower 60)
- 28th Street Extension (Manhattan Beach)
Information on current beach conditions is available on the county’s 24-hour hotline at 800-525-5662 and online.