SANTA MONICA—On Sunday, July 11, around 17 million gallons of untreated sewage were dumped into Santa Monica Bay after a power outage. Multiple Los Angeles beaches were closed to the public as a result.
The sewage spill came from the city’s oldest and largest sewage plant Hyperion Water Reclamation. The spill happened only one mile offshore instead of the normal five miles to prevent the plant from discharging even more sewage. A plant official stated the spillage was an emergency decision to keep the plant from going completely offline.
The spill lasted for eight hours, and resulted in the Department of Health announcing the closure of El Segundo Beach, Grand Avenue Storm Drain, Dockweiler State Beach at Water Way Extension, and Dockweiler State Beach on July 12.
Officials were conducting water quality tests before the beaches reopened. The issue was resolved Monday and the incident is currently under investigation.
