IMPERIAL BEACH, Calif. (KGTV) — San Diego County is offering a short-term solution to a decades-old problem by distributing air purifiers to families affected by the smell of sewage entering the ocean from the Tijuana River.
"In the middle of the night, you're completely asleep, and you start smelling it, and it's so bad that it wakes you up,” said Lilia Carnahan, who lives near Imperial Beach.
“We would prefer they fix the issue rather than provide these band-aid solutions, but we’ll take what we can get,” said Cesar Rosales, who lives in San Ysidro.
In June, the Board of Supervisors approved Chairwoman Nora Vargas’ request to provide air purifiers. A random lottery selection among South Bay residents determined who received one.
“As soon as I heard about it, I thought I might as well give it a try,” Carnahan said.
Vargas said they used $100,000 from the county to purchase around 400 purifiers, which she helped distribute on Saturday.
“If we can make government work for everyone and we can help people, then I'm going to do it,” Vargas said. “If it’s not enough and it’s just a band-aid, I’ll take all the criticism—I don’t care.”
While it’s not guaranteed to eliminate the smell, South Bay residents are desperate for some relief.
“This would be great help for us to get rid of that smell, hopefully,” Rosales said.
A recent study by the American Chemical Society found evidence of air pollution resulting from sewage in the Tijuana River. Researchers believe the contaminated air could spread to San Ysidro and Imperial Beach, increasing health risks.
“One of my daughters has a lot of breathing problems. When we lived in Chula Vista, she didn’t suffer from all that,” Carnahan said.
Vargas recently enlisted the CDC to investigate, but residents living near the border are still suffering.
