The Brief A quarter-mile stretch of Laguna Beach at Thalia Beach will remain closed through the Fourth of July weekend after 2,000 gallons of raw sewage spilled into the ocean. The spill was caused by a malfunctioning force main sewer line pump on Thursday night, with the runoff flooding at least one nearby residential backyard before reaching the water. The closure will last for at least three days until follow-up water quality testing confirms that the ocean meets state health standards for swimming and surfing.



A stretch of coastline in Laguna Beach will remain closed through the Fourth of July weekend after a malfunctioning sewer pump sent an estimated 2,000 gallons of raw sewage into the ocean, according to the Orange County Health Care Agency.

The closure spans a quarter-mile north and south of Anita Street at Thalia Beach. Officials say the affected waters will remain closed to swimming, surfing and diving for at least three days, until follow-up water quality testing confirms the ocean meets state health standards.

But before any sewage reached the water, it flowed through the backyard of one Laguna Beach couple.

Lee and Lynn Cohen were at a party Thursday night when their phones wouldn't stop buzzing. They came home to find a geyser of raw sewage erupting from a broken pipe just next door.

 Quite a bit of flow was coming down there, and it finds a path of least resistance, and it flowed right through our yard,  Lee Cohen said.  And so we had kind of had a river of, yes, kaka going through our place. And it was a mess, left a mess. But hey, the city was down here quickly. 

Crews worked to secure the leak Thursday night, according to Cohen, who said it took about two hours to get under control. That account has not been independently confirmed by county officials.

The spill was caused by a malfunction of a force main sewer line pump, the health care agency said in a statement.

 We're closely monitoring an active sewage spill of approximately 2,000 gallons in Laguna Beach, caused by a malfunction of a force main sewer line pump,  Orange County Supervisor Katrina Foley said

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