FOCUS: ORANGE COUNTY COMMUNITY NEWS : NEWPORT BEACH
With slowing water currents easing fears about the possibility of contaminated water crossing its ocean border from Huntington Beach, city officials have issued reassurances to residents and visitors that waters here are safe.
In a public letter, Mayor Dennis O’Neil said the waters are tested frequently and routinely come back with clean bills of health.
The mayor cautioned that swimming near storm drains should be avoided to sidestep potential infection. A state law that took effect this summer expanded the county’s testing program.
“Given the new standards, we may see more closed beaches--not because they are dirtier, but because they are held to higher standards,†O’Neil said.
City officials said a shifting tide late last week reversed the flow of bacteria-contaminated water from Huntington Beach. A day earlier, county workers had cautioned the currents were heading toward Newport Beach.
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