Water service outage in Porter Ranch and Granada Hills impacting more than 9,000 LADWP customers

LOS ANGELES (KABC) — Thousands of people living in Porter Ranch and Granada Hills will have their water service cut off Wednesday due to emergency repairs at a local water pump station.

According to the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, 9,200 customers are experiencing a water service interruption.

What areas are being impacted?

The service area being affected is bounded by Rinaldi Avenue to the south, Balboa Boulevard to the east, De Soto Avenue to the west and the foothills and hills to the north.

LADWP is setting up water distribution sites at the following locations to provide drinking water to customers. You can stop by from 10 a.m. – 7 p.m.

• Holleigh Bernson Memorial Park, 20500 Sesnon Blvd, Northridge, CA 91326

• O’Melveny Park, 17300 Sesnon Blvd., Granada Hills, CA 91344

• Intersection of Tampa Ave. And Sesnon Blvd. on the border of Northridge and Porter Ranch

What happened at the water pump station?

According to LADWP, on Tuesday, crews were repairing the pump station that connects to a 10-million gallon water tank that serves the area.

While they were working, a valve that controls the flow of water from the pump station to a tank serving the area failed to open, causing the water flowing from the tank into the pipes serving the area to cut off.

Crews have since began excavation to access and repair the valve, which is located 20 feet underground.

LADWP expects the excavation process to take 14 to 16 hours before actual repairs can begin.

Crews hope to complete repairs by Friday, August 8. Crews will begin pumping water Wednesday evening, and an official with the LADWP says they hope to have water restored to everyone in the next 24 to 48 hours.

“The safety of our customers and the community is our top priority as we work quickly to make repairs and resupply water,” said LADWP in a statement. “LADWP is coordinating with the LA Fire Department to develop a water supply contingency plan for the area, including providing water tankers while this work is in progress, and is also coordinating with LAPD.”

On Tuesday, LADWP issued an urgent call to customers to conserve water, but due to the severely restricted water flow into the tank and other connections into the service area coupled with high summer demand, the tank was drained by approximately 7 a.m. Wednesday.

“We appreciate your patience and cooperation as we work to make these repairs as quickly and safely as possible,” said LADWP.

For the latest updates, visit www.ladwpnews.com.