Ballona Crk. Spill; Ballona Creek, CA

Ballona Creek, CA | 1999-Oct-11

Initial Notification: On the afternoon of 11OCT99, MSO Long Beach received report from the Los Angeles Fire Dept. of a possible pipeline rupture spilling crude into the Ballona Creek (inland of Marina Del Rey, CA). The discharge was estimated to be about 500 gallons. The product source was from a storm drain, rather than a pipeline, and was traced back to the parking garage of an apartment complex that maintains an oily water separator to treat natural seeps from the La Brea tarpits. The separator has been inoperable for sometime, thereby allowing the discharge of oily water into the storm drain system that leads out to Ballona Creek. The source of the leak has been secured and cleanup operations are underway. So far, about 7 miles of storm drain pipe and about 4 miles of creek are impacted. An overflight yesterday morning confirmed that no sheen or product has exited the creek. USCG district 11.