a couple walking towards the sea

Beach Water Warning for L.A. County Beaches

Stay out of the water, at least for now. The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health is asking residents who are planning to visit several popular L.A. County beaches to use caution.

County officials say be careful of swimming, surfing, and playing in ocean waters around discharging storm drains, creeks, and rivers. 

Public Health tested a sample of ocean water on Thursday, July 29th, and found that beach areas near Hyperion continue to exceed state standards for bacteria.

They say that currently, the higher than normal levels of bacteria in the water is not due to untreated sewage being discharged into the ocean. Bacterial levels often fluctuate daily and can be affected by recent rain events.

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

Other beaches under advisory: 

  • Avalon Beach at Catalina Island (50 feet east of the pier)
  • Pico-Kenter storm drain (Santa Monica Beach)
  • Topanga Canyon Beach in Malibu

Beach area sample results identified water quality levels within state standards for the following areas, and warnings have been lifted as of Friday, July 30:

  • El Segundo Beach – Grand Avenue storm drain (Near Dockweiler Tower 60)
  • 28th Street Extension (Manhattan Beach)

3 ways to find out if your beach is safe

  1. Lifeguards were asked to post yellow advisory signs at affected areas. Read the signs, which will tell you if it’s safe to go into the water.
  2. Recorded information on beach conditions is available 24-hours a day on the L.A. County’s beach closure telephone hotline: 1-800- 525-5662.
  3. Updates are available on the Beach Water Quality page of the L.A. County Public Health website.

by Cherryl Bird – Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Twitter @ladycbird | Instagram @cherrylbird


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