Sewage Keeps Beach Closed for 3rd Day
Aliso Beach County Park remained closed to sunbathers and surfers for the third straight day Saturday because of a sewer line break that sent 900,000 gallons of raw sewage into the ocean.
Lifeguards at the beach along Pacific Coast Highway in south Laguna Beach spent Saturday turning away weekend visitors to make sure no one entered the water or used the picnicking area near Aliso Creek.
Michael Dunbar, assistant manager and chief engineer for the South Coast Water District, said he expected the beach to reopen by the July 4 weekend and that recent heavy surf should speed the natural dissolution of the sewage in the ocean.
In addition to Aliso Beach, the adjacent beach areas of Treasure Island and Table Rock also remained closed, although officials said the two areas may reopen earlier than Aliso.
The spill, the third in the area this year, came Thursday morning when an older pipeline ruptured and sent the sewage spilling into Aliso Creek, which flows into the ocean at the popular beach just north of Aliso Pier.
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