Water, Water, Everywhere...
But Not a Drop to Drink When Malibu Water Main Breaks 

Mirror Staff

   Malibu, one of the world’s most fabled beach towns, was dry from late Friday until Saturday afternoon, after a 30-inch water main broke near Big Rock Road, leaving 5,000 residents and some businesses without water. 
   Friday night, Malibu restaurants and businesses were shut down, the city was doling out five-gallon jugs of water to residents and setting up portable toilets, and Pacific Coast Highway was closed from Topanga Canyon to Encinal Canyon to all but residents as County Department of Public Works (DPW) crews worked to repair the main. 
   Even after water began to flow again Saturday afternoon, residents were warned to boil water for five minutes until Monday, by which time normal water pressure would be restored and any sediments 
in the water would be flushed out. PCH remained closed on Sunday to all but residents, because, according to the DPW, visitors would overburden the water supply and increase the risk of fire. Sheriff’s arson watch spotters were on duty through the weekend. 
   Though a few residents criticized the city for acting too slowly when the first leaks were spotted Thursday, most took it in stride.