OIL SPILLS INTO PYRAMID LAKE.Byline: Amy Raisin Darvish Staff Writer A broken pipeline spewed oil onto Pyramid Lake Pyramid Lake, 188 sq mi (487 sq km), W Nev. The lake, a remnant of ancient Lake Lahontan, receives the Truckee River. Visited (1844) by U.S. explorer John Frémont, the lake was named for its large pyramidal rocks. , spreading black liquid across an estimated eight acres of the water surface on a major reservoir that supplies Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, . Los Angeles County Fire Department Not to be confused with Los Angeles Fire Department. The Los Angeles County Fire Department (LACoFD), serves unincorporated parts of Los Angeles County, as well as 58 cities and towns that choose to have the county provide fire and EMS services, including the City of La crews first by hand and then with bulldozers created a dike Dike, in Greek religion and mythology Dike: see Horae. dike, in technology dike, in technology: see levee. dike Bank, usually of earth, constructed to control or confine water. to stop the crude oil that flowed out of the broken 14-inch line east of Interstate 5, then into a culvert beneath the highway toward the lake. ``As a precaution, we stopped the flows from Pyramid to Castaic (Lake),'' Rich Sanchez, chief of State Water Project operations, said after the oil spill oil spill: see water pollution. was discovered. ``Pyramid Lake is one of our holding reservoirs. There's plenty of water (in reserves). There won't be any interruption to water service.'' It was not clear what caused the 14-inch Pacific Energy Co. pipeline to rupture sometime after 1 p.m. Wednesday. The pipeline is one of three - another also carries oil and a third carries natural gas - that parallel Interstate 5 through hillsides that suffered extensive damage during February's heavy rains. Large mudslides left sections of the underground pipelines damaged and exposed, forcing Pacific earlier to cap a section of its damaged line and temporarily reroute it. Pyramid Lake's visitors center has been closed by landslides that state officials say continue to move. It was not clear how much oil found its way into the water. Pacific Energy Co. officials confirmed that the pipeline broke and said about 42,000 gallons of oil were lost, according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. county Fire Inspector John Mancha. Sheriff's officials said they were told the oil slick covered about eight acres of the 1,297-acre lake. Created by damming Piru Creek Piru Creek is a large stream in northern Los Angeles County and western Ventura County, California. It is a tributary of the Santa Clara River, the largest stream system in Southern California that is still relatively natural. with a 400-foot-tall dam completed in 1973, the reservoir is filled with Northern California water brought south by the west branch of the California Aqueduct. Anglers fish its water for bass, trout, bluegill bluegill: see sunfish. bluegill Popular game fish (Lepomis macrochirus) and one of the best-known sunfishes throughout its original range, the freshwater habitats of the central and southern U.S. It has been introduced throughout the western U.S. and other fish. Pyramid and Castaic Lake downstream are owned by the California Department of Water Resources History 1850-1875 California recognizes many types of water rights. These rights have developed with the State over time. Prior to the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, signed in 1848, California was part of Mexico. . The water goes to Santa Clarita and other Southern California communities. Los Angeles has its own aqueduct system that brings water from the eastern Sierra Nevada. Fire officials said firefighters were on the scene by 2 p.m. Crews worked to create a dam on the hillside above the highway until bulldozers arrived. Representatives from the state's departments of Fish and Game and Water Resources and the U.S. Forest Service were on scene to assess the damage and plan clean-up efforts. Amy Raisin Darvish, (661) 257-5254 amy.raisin(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): 4 photos Photo: (1 -- color in SAC edition only) County firefighters try to drain water from under an oil spill at Pyramid Lake on Wednesday. The oil came from a ruptured pipeline near Interstate 5 that was weakened and exposed by the strong storms in February. (2 -- color in SAC edition only) Oil from a ruptured pipeline mixes in with water flowing into Pyramid Lake, a State Water Project holding reservoir. (3 -- color -- ran in SAC edition only) At far left, oil from a ruptured pipeline mixes in with water flowing into Pyramid Lake on Wednesday. (4 -- ran in SAC edition only) County firefighters bring in sandbags sandbags small sacks containing sand used to support an anesthetized animal in dorsal recumbency and prevent it from rolling sideways during anesthesia or surgery. Wednesday to contain an oil spill flowing into Pyramid Lake from a nearby ruptured pipeline. David Crane/Staff Photographer |
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