The SPPD Station itself is a concern. “I have worried about our building,” MacKinnon noted. “It’s concrete block construction, and this building could be impacted” by a major earthquake.The SPPD was not alone in reporting post-quake communication glitches, as cell phone and landline users - as well as other police departments - throughout Southern California reported non-responsive systems.When the shaking started Tuesday the Santa Paula Fire Department went through “our basic routine, pulling all our engines out of the station” to ensure, said SPFD Chief Rick Araiza, that personnel would not be injured and emergency response equipment not damaged. Santa Paula Fire personnel also conduct a visual survey, earthquake reports were examined and contact made with the Ventura County Fire Department, whose emergency response system the SPFD is a part of.“We checked with Ventura County Fire; they double check to make sure everything is operational,” including radios and cell phones. Following the Chino Hills earthquake, “Everything looked good, there were no problems for us” caused by the earthquake.Santa Paula conducts regular disaster exercises, and Bobkiewicz said the city is already in the initial stages of taking part in a statewide exercise to be held probably in the fall. “I don’t recall there ever being one involving all the folks statewide,” and although Bobkiewicz said he is unsure of the parameters of the coming exercise, “I suspect we will be assigned a specific situation as a county, a situation the whole county would have to grapple with on an ad hoc basis.”The goal of the statewide exercise is response and aftermath coordination stemming from a major earthquake. “They want it to be as real as possible” to gauge coordination effectiveness, “see how we all work.... It’s a different concept” for such an exercise, but one that Bobkiewicz said is important for earthquake inclined California.
Chino Hills earthquake gets attention of City Hall, SPPD and SPFD
August 01, 2008
Santa Paula News
When the 5.4 magnitude earthquake struck Chino Hills on Tuesday shortly before noon, the switchboard at the Santa Paula Police Station lit up with 911 callers asking if the shaking had indeed been seismically related, calls that ultimately overwhelmed the phone system.
By Peggy KellySanta Paula TimesWhen the 5.4 magnitude earthquake struck Chino Hills on Tuesday shortly before noon, the switchboard at the Santa Paula Police Station lit up with 911 callers asking if the shaking had indeed been seismically related, calls that ultimately overwhelmed the phone system. The quake - which caused some moderate damage and minor injuries in the Chino Hills area of Riverside County - was felt locally as a sustained rolling that some described as circular.City Hall reacted immediately to the incident. “We checked our city facilities, we wanted to make sure everyone was safe,” said City Manager Wally Bobkiewicz.Interim Public Works Director Jon Turner ordered a check of city infrastructure, with an emphasis on water storage facilities. “My sense was that everything was okay,” noted Bobkiewicz. “We found out the epicenter was a fair ways away... and we went on with our day.”Police Chief Steve MacKinnon said that “Even though on the edge of feeling it, we still got a significant number of phone calls” from residents regarding the earthquake, “to the point” of overwhelming the system. “It’s a reminder to the public that if you don’t have to be on the phone, don’t be” during an emergency, to avoid the “heavy influx of calls” that interrupted system capabilities.Although the Santa Paula Police Department did not consider taking any earthquake response action, “Anything greater this” would have warranted investigation. “Officers would be directed to check the city for damage and incidents,” an action MacKinnon described as “an eyeball assessment.”
