POLICE BRIEFS

Eron Ben-Yehuda

Thanksgiving holiday traffic didn’t cause major headaches in either

Huntington Beach or Fountain Valley, officials said.

“Everything was very smooth,” Huntington Beach Police Lt. Chuck Thomas

said.

No one was arrested for drunken driving, and no serious accidents took

place, police said.

At least in the cities, the streets are typically calm and quiet during

holidays because so many residents leave town for vacations, Thomas said.

The California Highway Patrol reportedly found traffic heavy on

Thanksgiving Day, but, otherwise, the freeways were surprisingly light.

However, drunken driving arrests across the state climbed from 1,256 in

1998 to 1,354 this year, the CHP reported.

Sewage spill contaminates portions of harbor

By this weekend, county health officials hope to reopen three marinas and

a beach closed due to a sewage spill in Huntington Harbour.

About 1,000 gallons of raw sewage leaked into storm drains from the Bolsa

Business Park in Huntington Beach, then into the harbor, said Monica

Mazur, a spokeswoman for the Orange County Health Care Agency.

The leak forced the closure of Peters Landing, Sunset Aquatic and

Portofino Cove, as well as Mothers Beach, she said.

Swimming and water sports are prohibited until water samples show

bacteria levels returning to normal, she said. She can’t make any

promises about reopening by Saturday, though.

“I hate to say yes because then the bacteria gods will work against me,”

she said.

Few people swim in the water but divers who clean the bottoms of boats

were asked to stay out, she said.

An unidentified block in a sewer line caused the leak, she said.