Water quality is poor after weekend rain
CITYWIDE When it rains, it pours, but thankfully, it doesn’t flood.
While Santa Monica received a steady stream of rain over the past week, bringing in more than 1.3 inches Sunday alone — according to the National Weather Service — the downpour didn’t seem to have overwhelmed the storm drain system in the city, according to Gary Welling, the waste water superintendent.
Extra crews were sent out over the weekend to clear the catch basin screens in anticipation of possible flooding, monitoring the storm drain and clearing out accumulated debris, Welling said.
“We did have a couple of folks out just checking Main Street and the (Third Street) Promenade area to ensure there wasn’t any flooding,” Welling said. “I did-n’t hear of any major flooding issue.”
Following a dry season, Southern California has received a series of storms over the past few months, the most recent one passing through on Sunday, sparking flood warnings in Los Angeles County.
Rainfall usually leads to cautionary flags for swimmers. According to Heal the Bay, people should stay out of the water for at least 72 hours following the end of the storm.
“It can take quite a bit of time for all of the water to reach the ocean so for 72 hours, you still have water coming in that is contaminated with bacteria and other contaminants like metals and trash,” said Polly Barrowman, a staff scientist with Heal the Bay.
But the water quality is typically cleaner following a long continuous rain storm, similar to what Santa Monicans saw last week, as opposed to a short intermittent rain storms where there are gaps of several days in between rainfall, said James Alamillo, the urban programs manager for Heal the Bay.
“The first few days of the rainfall will have flushed everything out,” said Alamillo, who once compiled the Heal the Bay Beach Report Card. “There is no time for dirt and trash and other uses to build up again.”
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on January 29, 2008. Read the original PDF.