After the Sylmar earthquake in 1971, the Metropolitan Water District o
f Southern California established emergency planning procedures. In 19
94, the Northridge earthquake in the same area put those preparations
to the test. Much of the groundwork proved helpful: an Emergency Opera
tions Center was activated within 40 minutes, and reconnaissance patro
ls completed their damage inspection within just 5 hours. In addition,
a decision to buy heavy machining equipment paid off when crews were
able to fabricate new pipe sections for the damaged Jensen Filtration
Plant. Lessons learned in 1994 were that practice sessions do not dupl
icate the actual experience of an earthquake; human emotional response
to disaster is unpredictable; agencies can expect outside assistance
and do not need large stockpiles of extra equipment; and a business re
sumption plan needs to be established so office work can continue duri
ng an emergency.