Three water storage tanks serving the City of Brookings will be retrofit for earthquake safety using funding from a federal grant approved this week.
The City will receive $407,813 from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for the project to retrofit the tanks located on Seacrest Lane, Marine Drive and Old County Road which collectively have a water storage capacity of 3.3 million gallons.
The total project cost is estimated at $543,750 and the City will use water System Development Charge funds to pay the local match of $135,937.
“This is another part of our ongoing emergency preparedness efforts,” Mayor Jake Pieper said. “The goal of this project is to protect our water supply from being lost through leakage when the distribution system is damaged in the earthquake.”
City Manager Gary Milliman said, “It is likely that a major earthquake will damage both our distribution system and the main supply line coming in from the Chetco River. With the completion of this project, we can retain water in storage for limited use and fire protection until pipeline systems are back in service.”
Work will include the installation of seismic shut-off valves, including installation of a seismic sensor/controller, power supply, and installing flexible expansion joints in tank ring walls.
The project must be completed by May 18, 2020, but the City plans to move forward with design and construction by 2018.
Federal funding will come from the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program, the same program under which the City received some $350,000 for stabilization of the slope adjacent to the Wastewater Treatment Plant a few years ago.