California Water Service Opens Two Care Stations in Lucerne as Residents Return From Mandatory Evacuation

LUCERNE, Calif., Aug. 08, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- (NYSE: CWT) — California Water Service (Cal Water) announced today that it has set up two care stations with food staples and bottled water for Lucerne customers returning from the mandatory evacuation necessitated by the Mendocino Complex Fire.  

According to Cal Water, water quality was unaffected by the fire and evacuation, because it was able to send crews in to keep the water treatment plant fully operational.  Although challenging, this was necessary not just to maintain quality for when customers returned, but also to ensure that firefighters had adequate water supplies for fire suppression activities before and during the evacuation.  Cal Water employees from around the state volunteered to assist in 24/7 operations to keep the water flowing.

“We really appreciate the high level of protection provided by Cal Fire to help us keep critical infrastructure intact and functioning.  We thank them for their excellent coordination with the Cal Water Emergency Operations Center,” said President and Chief Executive Officer Martin A. Kropelnicki. 

Cal Water is passing out bottled water because there could be some taste and odor issues as a result of the water not running through the pipes during the evacuation, something that can occur even when people leave their homes for vacation.  Crews are making modifications at the treatment plant to return the system to normal.

“We’re also passing out protein bars and other snacks because with the intermittent power outages that occurred during the evacuation, our customers might find that the food in their refrigerators has been affected.  This was a very scary, stressful situation, and we just want to do what we can to make things a little easier for our customers,” said Cal Water Local Manager Darin McCosker.

The care stations are located at the parking area across from Cal Water’s Customer Center in Lucerne, which is located at 6125 State Highway 20, and at the Lucerne Community Center, located at 3985 Country Club Drive.  They will be open from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. on August 8, 2018, and from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on August 9.

Cal Water serves approximately 3,200 people through 1,900 service connections in the Redwood Valley area and about 2 million people through 484,900 service connections in California. The utility has provided water service in the area since 2000. Additional information may be obtained online at www.calwater.com.

Released August 8, 2018