Coronado shoreline closed due to sewage from Tijuana River
CORONADO, Calif. (FOX 5/KUSI) — Memorial Day weekend is typically a time when scores of people flock to San Diego County's beaches to kick off summertime activities. However, for Coronado residents, they will have to head somewhere else for the holiday.
On Saturday, county health officials issued an updated beach management action notice, closing the entire western shoreline of the city due to the flow of sewage from the Tijuana River Valley. The closure stretches from Avenida Lunar in the south to North Beach in the north.
Other perennial closures like the Silver Strand and Imperial Beach shoreline also remain in place.
According to health officials, swimming in or otherwise coming into contact with the water in these areas while bacteria levels remain high could cause illness. The beaches will stay closed until sampling and observation can 'confirm these areas are safe for water contact,' officials add.
Federal officials fast-track expansion of South Bay sewage plant
The closure comes on the heels of a period with worse-than-normal conditions for South County residents amid work to the sewage treatment system on the other side of the border.
The repairs earlier this month to a critical line connecting the San Antonio de los Buenos Plant in Mexico to the South Bay International Wastewater Treatment Plant in the U.S. required the diversion of wastewater into the Tijuana River.
When the repairs began, Mexican and U.S. officials noted the South Bay treatment plant would try to collect as much of the extra wastewater as possible — even though it too is beleaguered by neglect and construction work — but it could lead to temporarily increased sewage flows.
The work was completed on Wednesday and concluded with minimal sewage flows crossing the border, according to a post on X by the U.S. International Boundary and Water Commission, which oversees the South Bay treatment plant.
It is unclear whether the Coronado closure is the result of lingering impacts of this work or by the chronic effects of the crisis.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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