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Miles of beaches across Southern California were closed down after a massive sewage spill at the largest water treatment plant in Los Angeles. Officials said that a power outage caused 17-million gallons of untreated wastewater to spill into Santa Monica Bay.
The spill forced officials to shut down a four-mile section of the beach from El Segundo to the southern end of Playa del Rey while authorities test the bacteria levels in the water.
"The affected beaches remain closed until water samples are confirmed negative for elevated bacteria. The testing results are expected to be available within 24 hours. Beach users are advised to stay out of the water until the advisory is removed," the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health said in a statement.
Hyperion Executive Plant Manager Timeyin Dafeta said the issue was caused when the facility "became inundated with overwhelming quantities of debris, causing backup of the headworks facilities."
"The plant's relief system was triggered, and sewage flows were controlled through use of the plant's one-mile outfall and discharge of untreated sewage into Santa Monica Bay," Dafeta said.
He added that dumping the wastewater was necessary to prevent the plant from going offline and leaking even more raw sewage into the water.
Dafeta told the Los Angeles Times that authorities are unsure what caused the debris to clog up the pipes.
"Why that quantity and where it came from is what we're still trying to ascertain at this point," Dafeta said. "It's the amount of material, and the kind of materials that came through that caused the problem for the screens."
The clog caused some damage to the equipment at the plant, but crews have since made the necessary repairs.