While early reports indicated the water loss was 8-10 million gallons of water, updated reports put the loss at in excess of 20 million gallons of drinkable water.
The water loss increased significantly because the L.A. DWP could not simply turn off the broken trunkline. Instead, first it had to find the right valves then turn them off slowly to prevent too much sudden pressure causing more breaks. Then, it was reported some valves would not completely close, causing thousands of gallons of additional drinking water to be wasted every hour. Thursday morning, July 31, 2014, it was reported that the valves finally were completely closed so repair work could commence.
Clearly the damage to land, structures, including famous Pauley Pavilion at UCLA, and hundreds of water logged cars and other vehicles parked in the flooded UCLA underground parking structures will be in the millions of dollars, and the loss of so much drinking water during our Los Angeles water drought is immeasurable.
It was reported that some workers inside UCLA’s Pauley Pavilion were taken to the hospital due to injury from inhaling gases from motors used to drain water from the floor of Pauley Pavilion.
If you suffered any water damage or any injury or other damage from this incident, your insurance company may provide coverage. Further, a claim should be timely filed with the L.A. DWP and City of Los Angeles. Our accident law firm handles property damage claims and injury cases for over 38 years so we invite you to contact us today at 818.222.3400 and info@WalchLaw.com for an immediate and absolutely FREE consultation.