lessons learned

Utilities Helping Utilities 1

Lessons Learned


Who are you going to call?


Sending Aid/Assistance• National Incident Management System

– All staff need to be adequately trained and certified

• Deploy as Self-Sufficient– Emergency food supply; sleeping considerations; cash

versus credit, etc.

• Physically and Mentally Prepared– Medically able (fitness; inoculations; etc.)– Briefed on conditions


Pre-Deployment Agreement• Lodging and Other Accommodations

– Communications– Employee accountability– Types of works assignments– Union acceptance

• Documentation– Track costs and work

• Reimbursement– Pay within agreed upon schedule– Affected utility seeks FEMA

reimbursement


Standards?


Safety Considerations


How are you going to get there?


Any special resource needs?


How quickly do we deploy?


Any special challenges?


Luke Schroder,14, looks at the smoke-filled sky after surfing. Evacuations and road closures kept many from the beach.(Richard Hartog / Los Angeles Times)

October 21, 2007

So Cal Fires Lessons Learned

Oct - Nov 2007


Firefighter Jason Falarski battles to save a house in Poway on Monday. For many in San Diego County, the scene was reminiscent of the deadly 2003 Cedar fire. Several hundred

thousand people evacuated their homes as wildfires flared across the county, but the size of the exodus made escape impossible for some.

(Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

October 22, 2007


San Diego CountyWitch Fire – 197,990 acres Harris Fire – 90,440 acres Poomacha Fire – 49,540 acres Rice Fire – 9,472 acres Horno/Ammo Fire – 21,004 acres

San Bernardino CountySlide Fire – 12,759 acres

Orange CountySantiago Fire - 28,500 acres

Los Angeles CountyRanch Fire – 58,401 acresBuckweed Fire – 38,356 acres


Overview• 23 fires burned from Oct. 20 to Nov. 9• Wind gusts of 110 mph; low humidity• 10 confirmed fire-related fatalities - 139

injured • 517,267 acres burned • 3,204 structures destroyed $473,680,500

– 2,233 homes, 5 businesses, 966 outbuildings– Lost furnishings and household goods $400,000,000– Estimated responders overtime pay $100,000,000– Lost economic activity $893,000,000– Initial estimate of losses - $2 Billion

• Largest evacuation in California’s history


Smoke from the Lake Arrowhead fires drifts across a blue sky seen from I-15 near Hesperia.(Submitted to Your Scene By Oceansider)


Water System Impacts• Boil Water

– 27 water systems in San Diego County – 2,522 connections

• Do Not Use– Ramona Water District– Evacuation order included “turn on sprinklers”

request– No pump power – negative pressure - ground

Water intrusion concerns– Conflict between State and County Health

directions

• Alternate Uses– Helo pickup at prime water sources– Potable water distribution sites


David Ottesen, 16, tries to douse embers before firefighters reach his and his parents' property on Bent Tree Court in Poway on Monday. “They just went to town on every single flame that was in our backyard,” said David, a high school junior. “We probably wouldn’t

have a house if they hadn’t come.”(Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

October 22, 2007


Mutual Aid Decisions

Water/Wastewater Agency Response Network (WARN)

(access to public and private signator utilities)

Organized and facilitated at county, state region and

statewide level.

Mutual Response Agreements with local / neighbor

utilities(per agreement)

Water Utility:- Assesses impact of emergency- Determines if resources are sufficient- Deploys available resources- Identifies need for mutual aid/assistance

Util

ity r

espo

nds

Act

ivat

es

Water Emergency

Occurs

Statewide Mutual Aid Agreement for all

resources (law, fire, medical, public

works, etc.)Organized and managed at

county, state region and statewide.


Response to the Fires

• San Diego County Water Authority (SDCWA)– Wholesale distributor to 24 utilities– Represents member utilities at specific

programs– Sits at the County Emergency Operations

Center during emergencies

• San Diego Local Mutual Aid– Own mutual aid agreement among distributors– Several members are also CalWARN members


Mutual Aid Response

• Requests from local utilities managed by SDCWA – Ramona and others requested aid from SDCWA– SDCWA contacted other utilities within the county

• Response from the San Diego utilities– E-mail request sent out to county members– 20 minutes later 105 resources gathered from 16 unaffected

utilities– Sufficient resources among the SDCWA member utilities to

manage the event


A firefighting helicopter passes over Amy Berling while she hoses the yard of a friend as flames approach the south Escondido home Tuesday afternoon.

(Brian Vander Brug / Los Angeles Times)October 23, 2007


Resource Needs• Resources provided

– Operators Mechanics Electricians– Water Quality Techs– Water buffaloes for firefighting and cattle

• Bottled water distribution– County managed– Local distribution points established with the utility

input– State Office of Emergency Services Guidance

• www.oes.ca.gov• http://www.oes.ca.gov/Operational/OESHome.nsf/

PDF/Drinking%20Water%20Guidance/$file/DrinkWaterGd.pdf


Ariel Yue peers from a tent at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego on Tuesday. Provisions, and volunteers to give them to thousands of evacuees, were

abundant. The last of the evacuees departed the stadium Friday, and the San Diego Chargers announced they would play there Sunday, as scheduled.

(Gary Friedman / Los Angeles Times)


Challenges

• Conditions changing drastically in an hour• Damage data not available until after a fire

passes• Public messages not clear on water systems • Upper levels beyond county (region and

state) not aware of mutual aid requests or response

• Reports of outages and evacuations remind listeners of past disasters – magnitude implies need for help

• Employee safety – no communications – unfamiliar surroundings – fire moving and shifting around


The Camp Pendleton Fire raged on Tuesday evening.(Submitted to YourScene by mitchellson)

Can’t put this out with bottled water or without dedication of water utility and mutual aid.


That’s All Folks…

• Questions• Contact

[email protected]

lessons learned

Documents

acres utilities

acres hornoammo

acres buckweed

acres harris

acres poomacha

acres rice

acres los angeles countyranch

acres orange countysantiago