BACK TO BASICS

Emergency Preparedness For Water Utilities

What Can go Wrong?

“We don’t see what we don’t want to see. We don’t want to think about scary things. That’s just human nature.”

Planning & preparedness is based on:

What is imaginable.

What we allow ourselves to believe.

We can only plan for what we can foresee and understand as possible.

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March 11, 2011 2:46 PM Japan

M9.0 EQ off East Coast of Honshu Island

Energy equal to:

4,000 Hiroshima Bombs

40% of the energy used in the World in 1 year

$20 Billion + in damages

Coast moved eastward - up to 13 feet

Tsunami 30+ feet tall

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Impacts

Human: 13,000 dead, 15,000 missing, 22,00 rescued by Search & Rescue Teams

Utility: 1 dam failure, 5 million houses without electricity initially, 50 sewage treatment plants damaged

Infrastructure damaged: 217,000 buildings, 7,735 schools, 26 train tracks, 2,126 Roads, 56 Bridges

2.1 + Million People without Drinking Water

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San Andreas Mega Fault

Plans

REQUIRED Plans

Ca SEMS/NIMS based emergency plan

VA & ERP

REALLY NEED

Incident Specific Plans

Urban-Wildland Fire Coordination Plan for Water Utilities & Fire Departments

Crisis Communications Plan

Recovery – Business Continuity Plan

Finance Plan

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INCIDENT RESPONSE PLANS

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Quick Exercise

1. Identify 5 hazards specific to your agency.

2. Circle the 2 biggest threats.

3. Of those 2 which 1 are you least prepared for?

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Urban Wildland Fire Plan

Identify areas of concern

Critical structures

Power Outages

Generator fuel run times

Critical sites and “ETA to Chaos”

Water Distribution Planning

Can you re-direct flow?

Where might you be able to set up distribution?

Specific Plans

WATER DISTRICTSARE FIRST RESPONDERS

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First Responder?

Disaster Service Workers

California Government Code 3100-3109

Declares “the protection of the health and safety, and preservation

of the lives and property, of the people of the state from…

Emergencies which result in conditions of disaster…

Is of paramount state importance requiring the responsible efforts of public and private agencies and individual citizens.”

ALL public employees “disaster service workers subject to such disaster service

activities as may be assigned to them by their superiors or by law.”

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RESPONSE

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Basics

Treat all incidents like they are disasters from the beginning Use Incident Command System

Assess and plan Damage and costs Resource Needs

Positions to consider Public Information Officer Safety Officer

Logistics of Response Food and water Shifts

Don’t assume quick fix!

Business Hours

Roll call or assigned meeting place

Automatic duties or assignments

After Hours

Automatic or requested

Where do you report?

Activation

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What Central point of coordination

Multi-agency

Multi-discipline

Purpose Ensure coordinated and efficient use of resources

Central situation status analysis

Who Representatives of all responding agencies

Mutual aid agency liaisons

Incident Command Post (ICP)

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Communications

Between Utility and Command

Incident Information

Water Expert

Distribution

Supporting infrastructure

Potential impacts

Approval of resource allocation

Water Liaison Role

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Capabilities of the water system What can the system do

Peak Capacity vs. Needs

Service Zones

Trigger points and impact

Back up plans

Essential facilities What needs protection?

What are the impacts if not protected?

Potential Issues Now, 2 hours from now, tomorrow…

What’s needed to ensure water system operability?

Expectations

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“HELP?!?!”

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Who can Help?

Agency Emergency Operations Center

County Operational Area

California Emergency Management Agency (CalEMA)

Mutual aid groups

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Mutual Aid/Assistance

Aid verses Assistance

Programs:

Ca Master Mutual Aid Agreement

California Water Agency Response Network (CalWARN)

Local Programs

ERNIE

WEROC

Understand the Nuances

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Requesting Mutual Aid

Description DETAILS!

Resources offered Match what is needed?

Is estimated cost and compensation being considered?

Agreement Costs

Liability

Commitment Needed

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Considerations for Mutual Aid

Resource Management Access to disaster area

When will they/it arrive?

Staging Area

Human Resource Care Rest prior to deployment?

Where will they stay?

Feeding and supplies

Equipment Resource Care Tracking and demobilization

Maintenance

Operators

Local knowledge

Communications – Send a Manager if possible.

Responding Agency Questions

What costs will be reimbursed and when?

Health precautions prior to deployment? Shots

Psychological exam

Behavior review

What items do your crews need to take with them? Small (bug spray)

Big (tires & fuel)

Expensive (cash).

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Incident Demobilization

Can you release mutual aid?

Do they need to rest before leaving?

Did you get all equipment back?

Have all forms been filled out in full?

Transition from “emergency response” to “recovery”

Return all non-expendable and unused supplies

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CRISIS COMMUNICATIONS

Keys to Communication

Just Do It!

Make it your message, not someone else's

Train everyone one the basics

They are always watching and listening

Message Map

Now do it in another language

Now Practice

Coordinate with Others

Social Media

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FINANCE

Disaster Purchasing Policy

Who has what purchasing authority? What is their limit?

During a crisis what is your large contract bid process? 3 bids still required? Closed bid? Price based?

Under what conditions are your policies enacted? At what point must it go back to your elected board for review or approval?

How can credit cards be used? By who?

What is the account limit on open POs? What is your process to authorize a PO?

Do you have COLD HARD CASH?

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Disaster Finance Musts

Emergency Fund/Accounts with sub-accounts for each project

“CYA” Contacts change and they don’t always agree

Keep proof of responses; if verbal follow-up with an email

Understand the FEMA Public Assistance Categories (FEMA PA GUIDE)

Safety Assessment; not damage assessment

Ca Disaster Assistance Act

“Don’t take action because you might get reimbursed. Take action to protect your customers and the public.”

Consider Hazard Mitigation Actions before you start to rebuild

Denied? Go back and ask again

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Documentation

Excel Cost Tracking Document People, equipment, supplies, building/infrastructure Example document on CD

Photo Documentation Process Pre and Post All buildings, equipments and infrastructure

Documentation Notebook Pictures Rulings by the board Receipts Declarations Logs Hours/times/mileage

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WRAP UP

Personal Preparedness

Know what disasters are probable www.myhazards.calema,ca.gov

Register with a reverse notification system

http://portal.lacounty.gov/wps/portal/alertla

Buy emergency supplies

Have a family communications plan

Join a Community Emergency Response Team (CERT)

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Our Systems Will Still Break

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Quick Exercise

1. Identify 5 hazards specific to your agency.

2. Circle the 2 biggest threats.

3. Of those 2 which 1 are you least prepared for?

4. What 2 specific actions could make your agency better prepared for that incident?

5. Name 1 person or agency that can help with each action.

What Went Wrong

“We don’t see what we don’t want to see. We don’t want to think about scary things. That’s just human nature.”

“The flaw at Fukushima was that worst-case tsunami predictions were exceeded…”

Planning & Preparedness is based on: What is imaginable.

What we allow ourselves to believe.

We can only plan for what we can foresee and understand as possible.

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Kelly HubbardMunicipal Water District Of Orange CountyWater Emergency Response Organization Of Orange CountyKhubbard@mwdoc.Com(714) 593-5010

“Remember the Calamity of the great tsunamis. Do not build homes

below this point.”