State Health Department spokesman Kurt Tsue said warning signs went up at Kahanamoku and Fort DeRussy beaches in an area in front of the Hilton Hawaiian Village Hotel and the Hale Koa Hotel.

Tsue said a shift in winds apparently sent the sewage back toward Waikiki. A major sewer line rupture Friday has sent tens of millions of gallons of sewage into the Ala Wai Canal as city emergency crew work around the clock to fix the break.

Signs had already been posted along the canal and at Magic Island.

Mayor Mufi Hannemann said he has allowed the raw sewage to be pumped into the Ala Wai because the only alternative would be to allow the sewage to back up into the homes, businesses and hotels near the sewer line break.

City spokesman Mark Matsunaga said the city completed the repair of the broken area, had allowed the sewage to flow back into the 42-inch concrete pipe and crews hoped to begin pumping sewage by noon today.

Matsunaga said the city crews are trying to be determine how quickly they can stop pumping sewage into the Ala Wai but overnight heavy rains had complicated the issue.