EPHRATA – The city of Ephrata released an after-action review following a significant water leak incident that occurred Sept. 1. The leak, which was detected in the early morning hours, prompted a week-long precautionary boil water advisory for residents. The review was an analysis of what transpired, highlighting both successes and areas for improvement. 

On Aug. 31, at 10:54 p.m., the city’s Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition system logged a “low reservoir 2” alert, indicating a potential issue with the water supply, according to the report. However, city staff were not notified immediately due to a failure in the copper landline used for the SCADA system’s communication. The first successful notification came at 1:53 a.m. Sept.1, when the Multi-Agency Communications Center dispatch reached the on-call city staff based on a resident’s call to the non-emergency line. 

“We discovered that the copper phone line, for whatever reason, was not functioning correctly. This is something we have historically relied upon and has always functioned well in the past,” City Administrator Ray Towry said. “We had chosen a copper phone line because they tend to be the most reliable, especially in cases of power or cell phone outages. We will be adding a second and possible third notification system.”  

He emphasized that, while the SCADA system detected the issue, the failure of the communication line significantly delayed the response. 

The leak's timing and obscure location - hidden beneath sagebrush just above a canal – posed challenges for city staff during their response efforts, Towry said. 

“The timing of it being in the middle of the night on a holiday certainly contributed to the difficulties we faced,” said Towry. “We have a phone tree, but during long weekends, it might take several calls to reach someone who is available.” 

Once city staff were alerted, they promptly investigated the issue at the Public Works shop, where they discovered a significant loss of water. However, despite initial uncertainties concerning the exact location of the leak, city personnel eventually found it. 

“We started looking at the system, and through a process of elimination, we isolated the lines,” Towry said.  “Once the sun came up, we could see where the leak was, and we were able to act quickly to repair it.” 

In an analysis of what went well during the incident, Towry highlighted the professionalism and competency of city staff, many of whom collaborated across multiple departments, including engineering, police, fire and administration. Additionally, the city worked closely with numerous agency partners to ensure public health was prioritized, including the State Department of Health Drinking Water Division, MACC 911, the Grant County Sheriff’s Office and the Grant County Health District. 

The review also identified areas needing improvement, particularly the communication failure with SCADA.  

Towry said upgrades are already in motion, emphasizing a need for a secondary notification system. Moving forward, the city plans to enhance its infrastructure to ensure alerts reach staff without fail.  

“We are currently working with our SCADA programming provider to potentially move to a VoIP phone line while also adding a backup cellular option,” he said. 

The city has also developed a water system plan, evidenced by ongoing construction projects, including a new water tower and booster pump, aimed at increasing system reliability. 

“Had this event occurred a couple of months later when those systems were in place, we could have avoided the boil advisories altogether,” Towry said, explaining that the new additions would have allowed city officials to move water and avoid a pressure drop.  

He said that although the added water tower and booster pump will lessen the chances of a situation like this happening again, nothing is impossible. 

“I don’t want to say it will never happen again, but we are working on getting the SCADA system to notify city staff in at least two ways and the water tower and booster pump will allow for us to move water more effectively in case there is another pipe break,” Towry said.  

The city’s after-action review provided insights into the unexpected breakage of the cast iron pipe, which had shown no prior deficiencies.  

“That pipe that broke is cast iron, and you don't have to replace cast iron once you put cast iron in,” Towry said. “Cities don't go in and say, ‘Oh, it's time to replace that cast iron pipe.’ Those generally have a 100-year lifespan, oftentimes longer. We examined the pipe after we removed it, and it was in near-perfect condition, outside of the one crack.”  

Towry said Ephrata officials are committed to enhancing communication with residents and ensuring all urgent information is disseminated effectively.  

Plans are underway to strengthen public communication systems through the city’s website and the new mobile application, MyEphrata, which will be released to the public in the coming months.  

“We remain committed to maintaining accountability and transparency with our residents about the challenges we faced and how we are addressing them,” Towry said.