Agenda Index City of Vancouver

CITY OF VANCOUVER
CITY CLERK'S OFFICE

M E M O R A N D U M

DATE: April 4, 2001 FILE: 3603

TO: Vancouver City Council

FROM: Tarja Tuominen, Meeting Coordinator

SUBJECT: Post-Earthquake Report

Ron Martin, Emergency Planning Coordinator, will provide a report reference on the Nisqually earthquake which occurred on Wednesday, February 28, 2001.

The attached Administrative Report, dated March 20, 2001, refers.

Att.

ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT

TO:

City Council

FROM:

Director of Risk & Emergency Management

SUBJECT:

Post-Earthquake Report

 

INFORMATION

POLICY

There is no City Policy Attributable to this Report.

Summary:

The Nisqually earthquake which occurred on Wednesday, February 28, 2001, at 10:54:32hrs PST caused very minor damage to the City of Vancouver and resulted in no loss of life or injuries.

Damage included minor cracking in some older buildings (including schools), some items knocked off shelves, broken gas mains, and disruption to both the main telephone system and the cellular telephone grid.

The most significant affect of the earthquake was the psychological impact that this event had on the citizens of Vancouver. A high volume of calls were received from concerned members of the public as well as queries regarding the overall state of readiness of the City to handle a catastrophic event.

An intensive series of media briefings immediately following the earthquake, coupled with follow up interviews, were conducted to restore public confidence in Vancouver's level of preparedness.

Nisqually Earthquake Statistics:

The Nisqually earthquake was centered in the heavily populated Puget Sound area of Washington State, between the cities of Tacoma and the state capital of Olympia. The exact position of the epicenter was 47.10.000N Latitude 122.44.000W Longitude with a depth of 52.40km. The earthquake had a magnitude of 6.8MwR and with soils and distance attenuation resulted in a magnitude of 3.2MwR for the Vancouver area. (See attached appendices "A" "B" "C")

Ground shaking intensities in the Puget Sound area during the quake can be seen on appendix "D". Had this event occurred in Vancouver at similar distances and depth from the urban centre, the ground movement would have been of a similar nature with higher intensity motion being experienced on the fill areas of the City.

There were two aftershocks following the primary earthquake a 3.4MwR at 01:10:20hrs PST March 01, 2001, and a 2.7MwR at 06:23:34hrs PST March 01, 2001.

The quake caused 206 injuries to persons of which 23 where deemed serious to critical in nature, one fatality was noted as a result of heart attack. The major causative factor in the injuries was falling masonry and nonstructural elements in buildings falling on victims. There were no injuries reported as a result of structural collapse.

Combined property damage to both private and public buildings and infrastructure is estimated in the 2 billion dollar plus range. (This includes both nonstructural, loss of business revenue, and direct damage.) A significant amount of damage was sustained to public infrastructure such as roadways, bridges and utilities. A number of civic buildings were also damaged to the point of being unusable and unsafe for entry.

The United States Geological Survey has determined that had the depth of the quake been significantly shallower, the level of damage to the affected area would have been much more severe.

Copies of the King County preliminary post event report are attached as Appendices "E" and "F" for support documentation purposes.

The Vancouver Experience:

The Nisqually earthquake resulted in ground movement equivalent to a magnitude 3.2MwR earthquake, and was felt throughout the region and as far away as Kelowna. Most people felt minor to moderate ground movement during this event and buildings throughout the City did move noticeably.

Damage in the City of Vancouver was minimal in nature and consisted of minor structural cracking, failure of gas mains, and disruption to telephone services throughout the area. The gas main breaks were focused more heavily along the Commercial Avenue corridor, however breaks were reported throughout the city.

A Translink fuel line tunnel was impacted by the quake, with fuel lines running through it rupturing and creating a potential fire and environmental hazard. Approximately 1300 litres of fuel escaped into the tunnel where it was contained by Environmental Response teams and the Vancouver Fire and Rescue Service.

Cracking in buildings was minor in nature and not limited to older structures. Some visible signs of damage were seen in relatively modern structures. One older parking structure in the City was closed and posted unsafe until it had been thoroughly inspected by structural engineers after a large portion of concrete spalled off during the earthquake. There were no reports of structural impact to any of the City's hospitals or health facilities.

There were no reports of impact to City buildings or infrastructure as a result of this earthquake. The Engineering Department and the Buildings Management Division of Corporate Services conducted rapid assessments of structures and buildings following the earthquake and confirmed no significant damage had been sustained.

Rapid assessment of structures was conducted based on the priority of life safety, with focus being given to day care facilities and seniors' housing. Permits and Licenses staff also conducted a damage assessment of the City hall complex due to seismic vulnerability. It was determined that the earthquake had no impact on the facility.

As a precautionary measure, the City Hall campus was evacuated after the event and staff re-entered the buildings upon completion of the rapid damage assessment approximately 30 minutes later.

The telephone service provider, Telus, experienced a complete system overload as a result of heavy public use following the preliminary event. Similar problems were experienced by the cellular network providers. This telecommunications disruption resulted in approximately 2 hours of telephone service delays in the City Hall complex.

Several City staff members from Engineering, Permits and Licenses, Park Board (Emergency Social Services) and Risk and Emergency Management travelled to the Seattle area after the earthquake to evaluate and learn what the potential issues of an earthquake of this size would produce in Vancouver.

Vancouver Emergency Operations Centre (VEOC):

Within 10 minutes of the initial shock from the earthquake, the Vancouver Emergency Operations Centre (VEOC) commenced monitoring of the event. This is largely attributed to staff being on hand in the facility when the earthquake occurred. Had the centre been unoccupied at the time it would likely have taken approximately 30 to 60 minutes to partially staff the facility and initiate monitoring activities.

All systems within the facility functioned properly and monitoring of the media reports and government information bulletins went smoothly. In addition, the systems in the building were tuned into specific frequencies in use by FEMA and the Washington State Office of EmergencyManagement, improving the flow of information on the event.
The VEOC liaised with responding City departments to ensure the global picture for the City was available when needed. Briefings were provided at regular intervals to the Director of Emergency Operations (City Manager) throughout the incident.

Media briefings and interviews were handled from the centre ensuring timely information dissemination to the public. A total of 37 media calls were handled from 13 television agencies and 5 radio stations. The remainder of the media inquiries were from newspaper and magazine news agencies.

The VEOC remained in operation from 11:05hrs to 21:00hrs February 28, 2001, at which time the facility was stood down.

VECTOR

Members of VECTOR, the amateur radio component of the VEOC, began arriving within 15 minutes of the initial shock. Upon arrival they established a communications net with other ham operators and EOC's in the lower mainland.

This group maintained a communications watch through the next 24 hour period working with the amatuer radio community locally, and also providing patching services for Washington State.

Two operators were in the VECTOR area throughout the incident.

Regional Emergency Coordination Centre (RECC):

The Regional Emergency Coordination Centre was activated in a partial capacity with BC Gas, Hospitals, and City of Vancouver workstations being opened. The activation time from initial shock to the workstations being staffed was under 30 minutes with the facility operational, monitoring information and report taking within 45 minutes.

The RECC remained open from 11:30hrs to 00:00hrs February 28, 2001, at which time the facility was stood down.

All key operating systems in the facility were functional and the information flow between the Vancouver Emergency Operations Centre and City Hall went smoothly. The interface software (EM2000) allowed for information transfer between agencies simultaneously and greatly enhanced communications between the RECC workstations and their parent Emergency Operations Centers.

E-Comm:

E-Comm reported no damage or impact from the earthquake, and although power was lost at a number of antenna sites within the E-Comm coverage area, no disruption to service wasexperienced as back up systems came on line immediately.
Radio service on the wide area radio system was not disrupted and coverage to the emergency service providers remained intact. As the earthquake was of low magnitude, it was deemed unnecessary to establish a special talk group for the incident and all agencies remained on their assigned frequencies throughout the event.

The consolidated 911 dispatch centre experienced a significant increase in call volume as people dialed the facility to see if the centre staff were aware of the earthquake. This resulted in a 200 percent increase in 911 calls for the period. A public awareness campaign is now underway to educate the public to limit calls to legitimate emergencies following an earthquake.

Emergency Services:

The earthquake did not impact on the primary emergency services in the City (Police, Fire, and Ambulance) with call levels remaining within the usual daily norms during the event and immediately following it.

As a precautionary measure Vancouver Fire and Rescue Service moved its equipment from the interior of the fire halls to staged parking areas outside of the buildings. This is standard procedure in earthquake zones worldwide following an earthquake event and is designed to enhance response and prevent possible damage in the event of aftershocks.

BC Ambulance service did not report any increased call volume following the earthquake and service levels remained normal.

Urban Search and Rescue:

The Vancouver USAR team was placed on standby alert following the earthquake. Mayor Owen contacted the Mayor of Seattle and offered our assistance, if needed.

All 62 members of the team were on alert for the 24 hour period immediately following the earthquake with their gear loaded and ready for deployment. The team remained on alert until stood down at 11:00hrs March 1, 2001.

Engineering Services:

Engineering services did not report any significant damage to City infrastructure and the Structures Branch conducted a telephone fan out of staff following the earthquake to initiate rapid damage assessment on bridges, towers, and roadways.

The rapid assessment was complete within 2 hours following the earthquake and no damage was reported. The assessment included both a deck inspection as well as a detailed examination of the substructure of all City bridges and viaducts.

Minor damage occurred at the Manitoba Works Yard. Damage was limited to a number of broken windows. In the Equipment Branch area unsecured tool racks and trolleys moved about the shop floor with some falling into service bays.

Dedicated Fire Protection System:

The Dedicated Fire Protection System was available for use following the earthquake. Given the low impact on the City, the system was not brought to a ready state.

Other City Departments:

There were no reports of any damage or impact from the earthquake from other City Departments.

As a result of the earthquake, a complete review of the City Hall emergency plans and evacuation procedures is underway. A working group has been formed for this purpose and will report back to the Corporate Management Team (CMT) providing recommendations for response improvement.

Enhanced training for Building Captains, Floor Wardens and City staff will be conducted on emergency preparedness and City Hall campus evacuation procedures.

Utilities:

Telus and BC Gas were the only utilities reporting earthquake related problems and damage.

In the case of Telus, the system became overloaded due to heavy call volume following the earthquake. Delays in getting a dial tone within the City Hall complex ranged from 5 minutes to an hour until the system returned to normal approximately two hours after the earthquake.

This situation highlighted the need to have key City staff placed on the priority access dialing system. This will ensure they have priority access to available telephone trunks and exchanges following any type of disaster.

Telus is continuing to enhance their public awareness campaigns to ensure that members of the public know their responsibilities when using the telephone system following a disaster. Coupled with public service announcements from E-Comm on the proper uses of the 911 service in the wake of a disaster situation, will help ease misuse and overloading of the telephone system.

BC Gas experienced a number of gas leaks throughout the lower Mainland. The prime cause of the breaks appears to have been shifting of pipes due to settling of soft soils.

All suspected leaks and confirmed breaks were dealt with over an 8 hour period. In the case ofbreaks, the system was shut down pending arrival of repair crews.

BC Gas maintains a very active public awareness program for emergency preparedness and gas main protocols during and after disasters. Throughout the event BC Gas issued bulletins and public service announcements.

A minor power outage occurred in the Coquitlam area following the earthquake, resulting in serious traffic delays due to traffic signals without power. No disruption to hydro service occurred in the City of Vancouver.

There were no reported disruptions to either the water or sewage systems and the GVRD reported no damage to their infrastructure.

Event Chronology:

02/28/01 10:54:32hrs Initial "P" wave from the earthquake hits Vancouver.
02/28/01 10:54:35hrs "S" wave from the earthquake rolls through Vancouver. Duration

02/28/01 10:58hrs City Hall complex evacuated.
02/28/01 11:10hrs VEOC stands to and monitoring of information begins.
02/28/01 11:15hrs Buildings Management and Permits and Licenses begin rapid

02/28/01 11:20hrs RECC stands to with City of Vancouver, Hospitals, and BC Gas

02/28/01 11:20hrs Initial information on the epicentre provided by the Pacific

02/28/01 11:20hrs City Engineering department begins rapid damage assessment

02/28/01 11:30hrs Director of Emergency Operations briefed on the earthquake

02/28/01 11:45hrs Director of Emergency Operations contacted and recommendation

02/28/01 11:55hrs Director of Emergency Operations authorizes the USAR team to

02/28/01 11:57hrs USAR team place on alert by the VEOC.
02/28/01 12:03hrs Initial reports in from City staff indicating no damage to City

02/28/01 12:10hrs Hospitals report no damage.
02/28/01 12:15hrs Telephone systems still overloaded and not functioning.
02/28/01 12:17hrs BC Gas reports leaks around the lower mainland with a series

02/28/01 12:23hrs Reports of minor damage received from neighbouring

02/28/01 12:30hrs VEOC files initial status report with the Provincial Emergency

02/28/01 12:45hrs State of Emergency declared for King County, Seattle, Tacoma,

02/28/01 13:00hrs All City departments report little or no damage to City buildings

02/28/01 13:15hrs Director of Emergency Operations briefed on the Seattle situation.
02/28/01 14:30hrs Director of Emergency Operations briefed on the City's status

02/28/01 14:45hrs VEOC monitoring continues.
02/28/01 15:00hrs RECC monitoring continues.
02/28/01 17:00hrs Final briefing for the Director of Emergency Operations.
02/28/01 21:00hrs VEOC stands down.
02/28/01 23:55hrs RECC stands down.
03/01/01 09:00hrs Federal disaster declaration made for Puget Sound area.
03/01/01 09:30hrs Risk and Emergency Management staff brief the Director of

03/01/01 11:00hrs USAR team stood down.

Media Information:

The Vancouver Emergency Operations Centre coordinated all media inquiries for this incident. Media contact included:

Agency Name Medium
CNN Television
NBC Television
VTV Television
CTV Television
BCTV Television
CBC Broadcast One Television
CBC National Television
CHEK Television
Fairchild Television
KOMO Television
KIRO Television
NKK (Japan) Television
CKWX Radio
CKNW Radio
CBC Radio
CFOX Radio
CFUN Radio
Vancouver Sun Print
Province Print
National Post Print
Globe and Mail Print
West Ender Print
Courier Print
Macleans Print

The VEOC proved to be an effective venue for conducting joint briefings.

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ag010410.htm

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