Southern California Beach To Reopen After Undersea Pipeline Leaked Crude Into Ocean

HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. (AP) A Southern California beach that had been closed since an undersea pipeline leaked crude into ocean waters last week is set to reopen Monday, officials announced Sunday night.

City and state beaches in Huntington Beach will reopen after water quality tests revealed no detectable levels of oil associated toxins in the ocean water, the city of Huntington Beach and California State Parks said in a news release. They are still urging visitors to avoid areas that smell of oil and not to touch any oiled materials that wash ashore.

That news will likely please surfers and beach-goers like Richard Beach, who returned to the waves in Huntington Beach with his bodyboard until lifeguards jet skis chased him out on Sunday. He trekked back across the beach, passing workers in hazmat suits tasked with clearing the sand of sticky, black blobs that washed ashore after the spill.

The waters perfect, said Beach, 69. Clear all the way to the bottom.

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Huntington Beach and nearby coastal communities have been reeling from last weeks spill that officials said sent at least about 25,000 gallons (95,000 liters) and no more than 132,000 gallons (500,000 liters) of oil into the ocean. It was caused by a leak about 5 miles (8 kilometers) off the coast in a pipeline owned by Houston-based Amplify Energy that shuttles crude from offshore oil platforms to the coast.

The spill was confirmed on Oct. 2, a day after residents reported a petroleum smell in the area. The cause is under investigation and officials said they believe the pipeline was likely damaged by a ships anchor several months to a year before it ruptured. It remains unknown when the slender, 13-inch (33-centimeter) crack in the pipeline began leaking oil.

On Sunday, there was no smell of oil and the sand looked largely clear by the Huntington Beach pier, where workers combed the sand for tar. But local officials worry about the environmental impact of the spill on wetlands, wildlife and the economy. With the ocean off limits in the community dubbed Surf City USA, relatively few people were at the beach and shops that cater to them have been hurting.

Officials in the city of 200,000 people have been testing the water to ensure its safe for people to get back in and said theyll continue the testing for at least two more weeks.

Since the spill, residents have been allowed to walk on the sand in Huntington Beach but not on the shoreline or enter the water, and parking was blocked off for nearby state beaches. Popular surfing and swimming spots in Newport Beach and Laguna Beach have also been closed.