Breaking the Chain: Lake Worth Beach Resumes Water Activities after Sewage Spill Incident

The sewage spill near the intersection of the L-10 Canal and Florida Mango Road, which was caused by a contractor for AT&T damaging a 36-inch subregional wastewater force main on April 12th, has resulted in a health advisory for all surface water bodies in Lake Worth Beach. Assistant Director of Systems Operations, Jason Bailey, recently shared details about the new state-of-the-art outage maintenance system that Lake Worth Beach has implemented to improve their operations.

Lake Worth Beach Water Utilities crews and emergency contractors worked diligently to repair the break following the spill. Recent laboratory testing, conducted in coordination with the city and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, confirmed that the water in these areas now meets surface-water quality standards for fecal-indicator bacteria. As a result, residents can now resume water-related activities in the affected areas as the public health alert has been lifted.

The original alert was issued near the intersection of the L-10 Canal and Florida Mango Road with some water bodies partially affected for a week. For more information on potential health effects of wastewater overflow, residents can contact the health department’s Palm Beach office at 561-837-5900 or email chd50contactus@flhealth.gov. In addition, Lake Worth Beach is using its new state-of-the-art outage maintenance system to improve its operations and prevent future incidents like this from happening.