FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 15, 2010
CONTACT: Robbie Wilbur
601/961-5277
MDEQ ISSUES WATER CONTACT ADVISORY FOR TURKEY CREEK
(JACKSON, Miss.) -- The Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) issued a temporary water contact advisory Friday for Turkey Creek in Harrison County. The advisory extends from Ohio Avenue northeast to Bernard Bayou in Gulfport. The advisory is issued due to a major force main break off Louisiana Avenue which was discovered the evening of October 14. Harrison County Utility Authority (HCUA) contractors are on site making repairs.
MDEQ recommends that people avoid water contact recreation such as wading or swimming in these areas. In addition, people should avoid eating fish, crabs, and shellfish from these waters until further notice.
The nature of this repair may require the temporary shut down of pump stations which could lead to additional bypasses including near the Westside pump station at 41st Avenue and Highway 90. The HCUA and its contractor are taking preventive steps to avoid additional overflows; however, MDEQ is issuing a precautionary advisory for the area of beach from Maria Avenue on the west to 38th Avenue on the east which includes beach monitoring station 8.
MDEQ staff will continue to sample the area to determine the severity and extent of the problem. The advisory will be lifted when water sampling shows bacteria levels have dropped to acceptable levels.
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