Loss Estimate in Water Tank Failure Starts at $20 Million

Damage and expenses from this week’s rupture of a Westminster water storage tank that ravaged a nearby neighborhood could run $20 million to $25 million, city and Orange County officials said Thursday.

City officials estimated total damage from the 5 million gallons of water that gushed out on Hefley Square Town Homes early Monday at $20 million, and they said they have enough insurance to cover that amount. The city, though, must pay the first $350,000 in losses, and is working with homeowners’ insurers to share the financial burden.

The damage estimate includes up to $4.5 million to repair the aging water tank with its controversial precast concrete wall panels, which gave way Monday. The city will await the results of a $30,000 engineering study before deciding whether to repair the damaged tank or build a new one.

But to get money quicker to families in the 49-unit Hefley Square condominiums, Orange County asked the state Thursday for more than $25 million in financial assistance to cover damages to the complex, residents’ personal property and two businesses.

The county’s Emergency Management Office put the losses to residents at $9.5 million and the cost of removing debris and restoring public utilities at $15.7 million.

The water tank rupture caused a massive flood that slammed into a nearby fire station and Hefley Square, injuring six people and leaving 10 families homeless. The city is paying for temporary housing and other amenities.

“I’m very hopeful the state will be able to step in, especially for emergency relief, because that is the key for those folks right now,” County Supervisor Charles V. Smith said. “We are most immediately concerned with the people who can’t move back into their homes.”

Smith, a former Westminster mayor whose supervisorial district includes the city, said the county’s request for relief funds was made so that financial assistance could be made immediately available to those who need it. The state would likely be reimbursed later for the emergency funds.

“Our goal is to get the machinery in motion,” he said. “Historically, the insurance companies can be slow in these situations.”

The county’s report to the state details specific damage, including the 10 homes that were damaged so heavily they have been tagged for demolition. In addition, the report said, 60 buildings throughout the area were damaged, seven garages were destroyed and 25 vehicles damaged or destroyed.

Two city buildings also were damaged. The county fire station that took the brunt of the 6-foot-high wave can be repaired, but firefighters can’t return to the building for a month or two, the report said.

At a late afternoon news conference, city officials said the city has a $5-million insurance policy and additional policies to cover the next $60 million in catastrophic damages.

The city also is working with the homeowners’ insurance companies on covering the cost of rebuilding at least 10 homes that will be demolished, said spokeswoman Marianne Milligan. Usually, homeowners insurance is the primary source of reconstruction funds.

Insurance adjusters for the city are expected to meet with residents today and Saturday to discuss their losses, officials said. An attorney for the homeowners association said this week that “the last thing we want is lawsuits.”

“We’re hoping to have this happen very swiftly, and lawsuits just slow things down,” said lawyer Tary Loomis-Therrien of Lake Forest.

Separately from the damage estimates, the Orange County Red Cross said it has spent about $30,000 on emergency relief. It provided a care and reception area immediately after the early-morning flood, opened a shelter the first night and helped 27 families with clothes and meals, Red Cross officials said.

Since the flood, city officials have been criticized for not maintaining the city’s two reservoirs at the same level as tanks operated by other municipal water departments, which hire experts to perform inspections at least every five years.

Westminster’s only independent structural survey of its two aboveground concrete tanks occurred only last December. Previously, city officials said, the tank that burst was drained and inspected for structural damage after the Northridge earthquake in 1994. Both inspections showed signs of rust, cracks, rotted caulking and damaged beams, but they were on the opposite side of the point that ruptured.

City Engineer Marwan Youssef said Thursday that one possible cause is the deterioration of steel reinforcement bars placed inside the concrete to secure the precast concrete walls in resisting the force of the water. On Wednesday, Youssef had identified a point where the floor meets the wall as the weak area that led to the rupture.

“We really won’t know until the study is done,” he said.

Meanwhile, residents who live in 39 of the moderately damaged homes were given permission to move back in Thursday evening. All utilities in the homes have been restored except for gas, which is expected to be turned back on today.

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Residents Take Stock,Official Tally Losses

Westminster officials pegged the tab for Monday’s water tank rupture at $20 million to $25 million, with three-quarters of the bill going for cleanup costs. City insurance adjusters are expected to go home today with residents in the Hefley Square Town Home complex to catalog the damage.

Officials still debating whether to rebuild $4-million water tank

Damaged fire station to reopen in 30 to 60 days

6112

Damage: Back wall smashed, garage torn open

Owner: Elizabeth Gescheider

Assessed value: $128,964

6114

Damage: Garage collapsed, car crushed

Owner: Gary Whitaker

Assessed value: $126,277

6116

Damage: Garage collapsed, two cars crushed

Owner: Thomas Gale

Assessed value: $146,906

6140

Damage: Kitchen, living room sheared off

Owners: Jerry and Maudena Loflin

Assessed value: $125,000

6142

Damage: Kitchen stripped clean

Owner: Richard Lechler

Assessed value: $145,319

6144

Damage: Water smashed front window, carried sleeping owner into courtyard

Owner: Blayne Parenteau

Assessed value: $150,000*

6146

Damage: First floor walls buckled

Owners: Earl and Shirley Lain

Assessed value: $146,000

6148

Damage: Ground floor wiped out by concrete slab, two cars swept away

Owner: Larry Tomes

Assessed value: $140,000

6150

Damage: Furniture tossed around, rear door and window remained intact

Owner: Terry Lee Dickson

Assessed value: $150,000*

6152

Damage: $120,000 loss according to adjuster, garage torn open

Owner: Virginia Lange

Assessed value: $125,000

6118

Damage: Yellow-tagged home to be boarded up, fenced off along with neighboring red-tagged condos

Owner: Harold and Glynis Carter

Assessed value: $140,000

* Estimate

Red-tagged condos: 6112-6116, 6140-6152

Yellow-tagged condos: 6118, 6128, 6132, 6134, clubhouse

Demolished garages: 6114, 6116, 6118, 6120, 6140, 6142, 6144, 6146, 6148, 6150

Red-tagged garages: 6112, 6122, 6124, 6126, 6132, 6134, 6136

Sources: City of Westminster, Acxiom/DataQuick