Wildlife officials said this weekend that they had found several birds covered in oil after an East Los Angeles pipeline ruptured on Friday, causing crude to spill into storm drains and flow into the Los Angeles River.
The birds were pulled from the river and taken to the Los Angeles Oiled Bird Care and Education Center in San Pedro for treatment and cleaning. a statement Saturday from Oil Wildlife Care Network, a collective of wildlife emergency response organizations and universities.
It was not immediately clear how many birds were affected.
The crack was reported near East Cesar Chavez and North Eastern Avenue around 3:20 a.m. Friday, according to the Los Angeles County Fire Department.
A telecommunications team L.A. County Fire Capt. Aaron Caton said a 6-inch hole drilled 10 feet down to lay a fiber-optic cable hit a pipeline passing under the road that transports crude oil from Kern County to the Port of Los Angeles.
An estimated 2,400 gallons of crude oil spilled from the pipeline, according to County Fire Department. It flowed onto surface streets and into nearby storm drains, eventually reaching the river.
The pipeline operator shut down the pipeline within 30 minutes. Crossroad be closed employees worked on sunday excavation and repair Rekha.
In a statement Sunday afternoon, the city of Long Beach said officials there were monitoring conditions in the LA River.
“At this time, we understand that no new oil is entering the river,” the statement said. “Current mitigation efforts are focused on addressing the oil already present.”
The city said an oil sheen was visible near the Pacific Coast Highway bridge over the river on Saturday. Oil-absorbing booms were deployed at several points along the waterway, including PCH, Willow Street, Ocean Boulevard, and the approaches to the Golden Shore.
“With boom placement, crews implemented skimming operations where flaking is present to remove oil from the river,” the statement said.
Homeless services workers were speaking to homeless people near the river to explain the spill and provide services, according to the statement.
