‘The stench of death’: California city plagued by extraordinary odor for weeks

Carson residents say they're unwell as canal's decomposing vegetation sends off plumes of hydrogen sulfide gas

Lakesia Livingstone was driving back to her home in Carson, California, in early October after watching her son play football when she was hit with an overpowering stench. It was like a rotten egg smell, horrible, very strong," Livingstone says. I thought, oh my God, something is going on."

That smell has now lasted four weeks, creating chaos for residents of Carson, a city in Los Angeles county. The extraordinary stink - which has been described as the stench of death" - is coming from a nearby canal where authorities say decomposing vegetation is sending off plumes of hydrogen sulfide gas.