Bacteria

Eron Ben-Yehuda HUNTINGTON BEACH -- Another nasty wave of contamination fouled the ocean this week, renewing concerns about Surf City's reputation for fun in the sun. "I think everybody's worried," said Joyce Riddell, president of the Huntington Beach Chamber of Commerce. "Everybody wants to have a safe and clean beach." Recent water-quality tests have been disappointing. For only six days since April has the entire 8 1/2-mile stretch of the local shore been considered safe for swimming.

Rick Fignetti As we head toward winter and the storm fronts movethrough, if you're a surfer, there are a couple things yamight just want to do. This last weekend we got rained on twice. The water went flowing down the streets to the storm drains and out to sea, on the way picking up trash, debris, germs and bacteria. Usually the first few storms are the worst, with the buildup of muck in the gutters over the summer. During the storm, and a few days after, you don't wanna surf by the storm drains and river mouths because you could get sick.

Eron Ben-Yehuda As the bacteria continues to play hide-and-seek in the ocean off Huntington Beach, evidence suggests the contamination is nothing new and may persist indefinitely. Similar levels of bacteria were found during the same period last year, yet health officials neither closed beaches nor posted warnings along the sand as they have done this time around, Orange County Sanitation District data shows. "It doesn't mean the water is dirtier," Assemblyman Scott Baugh (R-Huntington Beach)

Eron Ben-Yehuda HUNTINGTON BEACH -- Water contamination levels continued to fluctuate wildly off the Huntington Beach coast this week, as the source of pollution that scared off so many visitors during Labor Day weekend and ruined most of the summer in Surf City remained elusive. By Wednesday afternoon, the bacteria counts were well within acceptable standards after previously shooting to three times above safe levels, said Michele Tuchman, an Orange County Sanitation District spokeswoman.

Andrew Edwards Government numbers show ocean bacteria levels that spiked during recent rainstorms have begun to fall to normal levels, with the exception of the waters near the Santa Ana River mouth. "Pretty much the whole area's recovered, except for the area around the Santa Ana River because Prado [Dam is] still discharging," Orange County Health Care Agency spokeswoman Monica Mazur said. Prado Dam, west of Corona, is about 30 miles upstream from the ocean.

Danette Goulet A 2,000-foot stretch of Huntington State Beach remains closed this week, while health care officials search for the cause of high bacteria levels. The Orange County Health Care Agency, Environmental Health, closed the 1,000 feet of beach to the north of Magnolia Street and 1,000 feet south after an unknown quantity of sewage, from an unknown source, polluted the waters. Testing has shown the sewer lines officials believed to be cracked and leaking are in working order, said Monica Mazur, spokeswoman for the Orange County Health Care Agency.

Tariq Malik HUNTINGTON BEACH -- Residents concerned about the integrity of city sewers can rest easy. Water samples drawn throughout April from 10 wells spread throughout the Downtown area have found no traces of contamination from bacteria. Five weekly tests have found no evidence of residue from sewer leaks first spotted in 1996, city officials said. "We hope this puts to rest any concerns about the repaired Downtown sewers causing any possible water quality issues with the ocean," City Administrator Ray Silver said.

Animal care workers confirmed Wednesday that an outbreak of paralyzed and dead birds that washed up on the shore of Huntington State Beach north of the Santa Ana River was caused by avian botulism. “It’s botulism type C, normally found in lakes and ponds and waterfowl,” said Debbie McGuire, wildlife director of the Wetlands and Wildlife Care Center. “What it’s doing out in the ocean I don’t know.” Four survivors were released into the wild from the center Friday.

Paul Clinton The Orange County Health Care Agency posted health warnings on a stretch of Huntington State Beach, after high bacteria levels were detected. Signs dotted the sand running 150 feet in either direction of Newland Street, for a total of 300 feet, on the evening of May 29. The agency announced the posting at 4:30 p.m. on that day. That section of beach, located in the city's southeastern corridor, has been a trouble spot for high bacteria levels.

Paul Clinton For the second week in a row the Orange County Health Care Agency posted warnings at two locations in Huntington Harbour after discovering heightened bacteria levels. The Admiralty Drive Channel and Huntington Marina Channel were both affected by the postings, which were announced on April 25. That makes four postings and two closures in Huntington Harbour this month alone. The agency also announced it had posted warning signs at a familiar hot spot on Huntington State Beach.