Richmond officials outline after-action reviews, consultants and upgrades after weeklong water outage

City officials told the Governmental Operations Standing Committee on Jan. 13 that the Richmond water treatment plant is in the process of recovery, that water quality is safe to drink, and that outside consultants have been retained to conduct both a forensic after-action review of the plant failure and an assessment of the city's emergency response.

The city has contracted HNTB to lead a forensic, facilities-focused after-action review of what happened at the plant and what technical fixes are needed, and Hagerty Consulting to assess the city's emergency response and help with recovery planning and federal/state reimbursement work. Scott Morris, interim director of the Department of Public Utilities, told the committee: "The water quality is safe to drink." He said consultants have been on site since the incident and that repairs will take "several iterations" but that the plant currently meets demand.

Why it matters: The outage left large parts of the city without regular water service for several days and triggered public concern about oversight, communication and long-term resiliency. City leaders said they will split follow-up work across standing committees so subject matter is handled where members and staff can be most effective: technical plant findings and infrastructure options to Governmental Operations and Public Utilities oversight, emergency-management and response items to the Public Safety Committee (led by Director Willoughby's office), and resident relief, distribution and household assistance to Health and Human Services.

Committee plan and contractors: Jason Hoff, HNTB, described a work plan that begins with desktop review and document collection, followed by "boots on the ground" interviews with operations staff. Hoff said HNTB expects preliminary findings in the first two weeks after onsite work begins and that most incidents of this kind are "multifaceted," not the result of a single cause. Stephen Willoughby, director of Emergency Communications, Preparedness and Response, said the city has engaged Hagerty to evaluate the response, interview stakeholders, and build a post-disaster recovery plan that includes a community needs assessment. Willoughby said Hagerty will also help identify federal and state reimbursement options and support for businesses who suffered revenue losses.

Communications and public alerts: Willoughby said the city's previous mass-notification system (CodeRED) lacked features and had a clumsy registration process, and that the new platform, "Richmond Ready," is being configured to use IPAWS (the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System) so geo-targeted alerts can be pushed to cell phones within the city regardless of subscription. "If a cell phone is located in the geographical boundaries of the city, they should receive this alert," Willoughby said.

Oversight and next steps: Committee members pressed for transparency about consultant scopes and costs and asked for public release of HNTB and Hagerty scopes of work. Ms. Fields (city administration) said the firms were engaged to provide independent expertise and that many of the city's open questions will be addressed in the after-action reports. Morris said he is still compiling budgetary and purchasing details and cannot yet provide a total cost figure for emergency purchases, but the administration agreed to produce a ledger of response costs and to route items to the committees described above.

Quotes and attribution: "The water quality is safe to drink," Scott Morris said. "It's usually multifaceted," Jason Hoff said of similar plant failures. Willoughby told the committee the city has "pushed" IPAWS capability "over to our new platform already" so that the city can issue geo-targeted alerts.

What remains unresolved: Committee members requested the scope of HNTB's contract, a cost breakdown for consultants and emergency purchases, and confirmation of which documents (auditor reports, inspector general tips) HNTB will be permitted to review. HNTB said it intends to use any relevant materials made available by the city and that the firm will interview current and, where possible, former staff. The administration said more detailed responses will come in the after-action documents and future committee briefings.

Ending: Committee members scheduled further briefings: HNTB will present preliminary findings after site work begins, Hagerty will discuss emergency-management scope at the Public Safety Committee next Tuesday, and staff will return with cost and scope documents for council review.