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City emergency manager urges household preparedness, flags water and infrastructure vulnerabilities
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Summary
Eric Martin, the City's emergency management coordinator, told the Los Angeles City Health Commission that the city's Emergency Operations Center will be activated for major events and urged residents to prepare with kits, training and household plans.
Eric Martin, the City's emergency management coordinator, told the Los Angeles City Health Commission on Nov. 10 that the City's Emergency Operations Center would be activated during major events and urged Angelenos to prepare with supplies, training and household plans. "We would activate this here emergency operation center," Martin said, describing the EOC as the coordination hub for multiagency responses.
Martin emphasized earthquakes as the single most destructive hazard for Los Angeles and described planning around a 7.8 San Andreas scenario that would disrupt multiple critical infrastructure sectors, including water, power and transportation. He said tsunami risk is concentrated in the Port Complex and Marina del Rey/Venice areas and stressed the importance of distinct notification levels (advisory, watch, warning) after public confusion during a summer advisory tied to an offshore earthquake.
Why it matters: A major quake could sever water conveyance or the electricity that powers pumps, hampering drinking-water delivery and firefighting capacity in the immediate aftermath. Martin told the commission that the EOC activates partner agencies such as the Los Angeles Fire Department, LAPD and DWP to identify immediate sources of water and restore services.
Commissioners pressed Martin for practical outreach and resilience measures. "How do we get this information out to the 4,000,000 residents of Los Angeles?" Commissioner Cobb asked, urging broader neighborhood-level engagement. Martin said the city pushes the NotifyLA system and public-safety events and encourages neighborhood networks like CERT and the city's "Ryland" neighborhood preparedness outreach.
Emergency communications and volunteer operators: Martin described auxiliary communications and amateur-radio groups as a key backup when cellular or commercial systems fail. "For ACS, it's about 80 active operators," he said of the City's Auxiliary Communications Service; he added that other amateur-radio organizations and hospital-support groups bring the collective capacity into the hundreds.
Water system vulnerability: Commissioners asked specific, practical questions about LA's reliance on imported water and the risk from a damaged Colorado River conveyance. Martin said the City and utilities plan to repair and replace damaged sections but that the timing for full restoration depends on the severity of damage and on utility operations. He told the commission he would coordinate to provide more detailed timelines and contingency information to the Health Commission's research staff.
Preparedness actions Martin promoted included signing up for NotifyLA, CERT training, building go-kits (home, car, work) and neighborhood planning so residents can support one another in the hours before professional responders arrive.
What's next: Martin noted the city is coordinating with federal and state partners for large upcoming events, including the FIFA World Cup and the Olympics, and said the EOC will continue to run exercises and public outreach ahead of those events.
Sources and attribution: Remarks and data points in this article are attributed to Eric Martin and to commissioners who asked questions during the Nov. 10 Los Angeles City Health Commission meeting (transcript segments SEG 059'SEG 1251).
