FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 26, 2011
Contact: Robbie Wilbur
601/961-5277
MDEQ ISSUES BEACH CLOSURE FOR LOCATION IN HARRISON COUNTY
Beach advisory issued Wednesday also in effect
(JACKSON, Miss.) -- The Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ), through its Beach Monitoring Program, is working closely with local officials to advise residents that the following beach is closed:
● Station 10 -- U.S. Naval Home/Veterans Hospital -- near Oak Avenue in Gulfport from Alfonso Drive eastward to the VA Main Entrance. An advisory previously issued for station 10 on January 22 has been changed to a closure and also includes a section of Coffee Creek from 200 yards east of the bridge at Hewes Avenue to the beach.
A sewer line crossing the bottom of Coffee Creek was apparently damaged during a cleaning operation and approximately 8,000 gallons of sewage spilled into the creek. The City of Gulfport has repaired the line and will pump water from the stream to minimize the impact.
An advisory issued today is also in effect:
● Station 9 -- Gulfport Harbor which is located near Pratt Avenue in Gulfport.
When water samples show that levels are safe for human contact, the advisory and closure will be lifted. The Gulf Coast Research Laboratory, which performs water sampling of the Mississippi Gulf Coast beaches for MDEQ, notifies the agency areas have returned to acceptable levels. For more information on the Mississippi Beach Monitoring Program: http://www.usm.edu/gcrl/msbeach/index.cgi.
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