As zombies crawled the streets of Orange County early Tuesday morning, IRWD took this time to remind customers on how to take precautionary measures with their water supplies.

“The first 72 hours following an emergency are critical,” said a top IRWD official. “We are urging customers to always be prepared with their water should zombies invade the water supply.”

Here are the top ways to prepare your water supply in case of an emergency:

• You should store about one gallon of water per person per day. Three gallons is a decent starting point.
• Water should be stored in carefully cleaned, non-corrosive, tightly covered containers.
• All stored water should be clearly labeled and replenished every six months.
• Water may be polluted after an earthquake or zombie attack. Water that is boiled for five minutes will usually be safe from contamination.
• If boiling is not an option, strain the water through paper towels, paper coffee filters, or several layers of clean cloth to remove any sediment. Treat the water with household liquid chlorine bleach. Add eight drops of bleach per one gallon of clear water, or 16 drops if the water is cloudy. Allow water and bleach to stand for 30 minutes. Purify only enough water at a time to last a maximum of 48 hours.
• You should also learn how to shut off gas, water, and electricity meters.

For more information on how to prepare in case of an emergency and to sign up for emergency notifications, visit irwd.com/emergency-codered.

Photo Credit: AMC Media

Irvine Ranch Water District Board Member John Withers will have his name added to the City of Irvine’s Wall of Recognition located in Col. Bill Barber Marine Corps Memorial Park behind City Hall.

“I’m honored to be recognized and I believe this speaks to the cooperative spirit that exists between the City of Irvine and the District,” Withers said.

The Wall of Recognition contains hundreds of names of community leaders who have helped to shape the city’s beginnings and those who continue to build upon the foundation for the future.

Criteria for nominees to the Wall of Recognition include people who have demonstrated creativity and initiative in providing service to the community, made unique contributions marked by excellence and worthy of honor and showed exceptional determination, character, commitment and leadership.

Withers’ nomination cites his leadership in developing and preserving the San Joaquin Marsh, annexing the El Toro Marine Corps Air Station into the City of Irvine, and his ability to work with political leaders from both sides of the aisle. He and the 25 other nominees will be presented with certificates at the May 13 city council meeting.

Withers is a 29-year resident of Irvine and has been a vital member of the IRWD Board of Directors for 24 years. He served as Board Vice President in 2012 and President in 2004. He is currently a member of the Engineering and Operations Committee and Asset Management Committee, as well as various ad hoc committees.

More information about the Irvine Ranch Water District Board of Directors may be found on our website.

Contact: Shannon Reed, Public Affairs Manager
reeds@irwd.com, (949) 453-5500

Eleven sixth grade students from College Park Elementary School brainstormed on subjects to feature on their College Park News video and decided the California drought was a hot topic.

That’s when they called on Irvine Ranch Water District to shed some light on the matter. The students drafted 10 questions and convened in the school library with their video cameras, a green screen, director’s chair and a representative from IRWD.

“We started doing this about six years ago,” said Julie Hicks, the school’s librarian. “The students talked about the drought and how it affects them.”

Hicks works with Nancy Dusenbury from the computer lab and groups of sixth graders are cycled through the program, so everyone gets a chance to participate. Filming takes place twice a month and the finished product is shown to the entire student body.

On this particular day, students Beth, Michael, Mikey, Ansel, Maximillian, Yuta, Mandy, Kiley, Deanna, Matthew and Nina were ready with their questions.

“Quiet on the set,” Director Mikey called, and gave the five-second countdown. “Action!”

“How much water does an average person need or use per day?” Deana asked.

“Why should we conserve water?” Beth asked.

“How else does our city get water?” Matthew asked.

And so on.

Everyone takes their turn operating the cameras, or sitting in the director’s chair. The script is projected onto a screen while another technician scrolls through it on the computer while the interview is being conducted. The next step is to edit the video for presentation.

Who knows, maybe there are some budding television journalists among the bunch. Hicks said one of her former students is now in high school in Taiwan and is doing a similar video program at his school.

More information on IRWD education programs and the drought is available on our website.