Coastside County Water District Board of Directors

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1 To: From: Coastside County Water District Board of Directors David Dickson, General Manager Report Date: February 5, 2014 Subject: District Office Fire Recovery Recommendation: None. Information only. Background: On Wednesday, January 22 at about 3:30 A.M., District staff received notification that the fire department was responding to a water flow alarm at our offices. An electrical fire that started near our computer servers had triggered a sprinkler. The fire department quickly extinguished the fire, but the area of our offices near the computer enclosure suffered significant water damage, and smoke from the fire affected the entire building. This report reviews our recovery efforts to date and outlines what we will do to clean up and repair the damage to our offices. Although the fire destroyed all of our central computer and network equipment, we recovered 100% of our data as of the time of the fire. Our computer services firm, Irvine Consulting, obtained a new server and had our systems up and running within three days. After relocating front office staff into the boardroom and putting up a temporary wall inside our front entrance to isolate the most affected area and ensure customer safety, we re-opened the office for normal operations on January 29. Our field operations were relatively unaffected throughout the time the offices were closed to the public. I would like to recognize the dedication, professionalism, and resilience the entire District staff has demonstrated in responding to this incident and dealing with its consequences. Office Manager Gina Brazil arrived in the pre-dawn hours of January 22 and has worked tirelessly to marshal contractors and organize the recovery effort while minimizing the disruption to the District s administrative and customer service functions. Field Supervisor John Davis and his crew were on site moments after the fire department responded, and they have supported the office staff in every possible way, including doing much of the work needed to set up our temporary office building. Without exception, every District employee has pitched in to ensure that the District continues to do its job in spite of this incident.

2 Page 2 Building Cleanup and Repairs Based on assessments by the District s insurance adjuster and Andrews Disaster Recovery, a local contractor who has been assisting us, repairs and cleanup will involve at least the following: Remediation of fire and water-caused structural damage in the area immediately around the server enclosure. Cleaning of all building surfaces and fixtures to remove soot and smoke odor. Some porous surfaces may not be cleanable and will require replacement. Replacement of ceiling tile. Painting throughout the building. Replacement of carpet. Replacement or cleaning of all fabric-covered partitions and upholstered furniture. Temporary Offices The extent of cleanup and repairs will require that District staff move out of our offices. We have set up a modular building (tonight s Board meeting venue) in the parking lot to house our operations for a period of up to six months while contractors complete the restoration work. Our schedule calls for conducting business in the current offices through Friday, February 21, moving furniture and equipment over the weekend of February 22 23, and opening for business in the temporary offices on Monday, February 24. Insurance Coverage and Repair Costs The District has property insurance through the Association of California Water Agencies Joint Powers Insurance Agency (JPIA). The insurance covers us for all reasonable and necessary costs caused by the fire, with a deductible of $2,500. The JPIA adjuster has not provided us with an estimate but has instructed us to submit expenses as we incur them. Expenses to date for the immediate response effort, equipment replacement, temporary offices, and other contractor services have totaled at least $100,000. We can anticipate that building cleanup and repairs will add at least another $200,000 to $300,000. Consideration of Additional Modifications to District Office Building The District s office building is over 40 years old and was expanded in the mid- 90 s. With the building vacated for fire-related repairs, the District will have the opportunity to consider additional modifications which could address maintenance issues (termites and dry rot), improve building systems (heating, network and phone wiring), upgrade the building to modern energy standards,

3 Page 3 and configure the building space to better meet current and future needs. We have retained local architect John Evans to help us define our needs and identify possible improvements. We plan to present the needs assessment and options for office building improvements to the Board at the March 11 meeting. Pictures of Fire Damage Servers. DriveSavers, Inc. was able to recover 100% of the data from all of the drives in the active server.

4 Page 4 Backup drive unit. These drives are mirrored in the cloud. Computers used with handheld meter readers. These older computers were a total loss.

5 Page 5 Radix handheld meter readers. These were functional after being cleaned up and were used for the January meter readings. Water damage in the area near the server enclosure was extensive.