24-083 Guidelines for Water or Sewage Spills at Department Facilities

This notice is designed to give members guidelines on how to handle water or sewage spills at Department Facilities.

Contaminated Water Spills: 

What is contaminated water?

Any water that comes from a drain, sewer or other plumbing fixture that is not fresh water.

Procedure:

If flooding occurs as a result of a contaminated water spill, members should attempt to contain the spill by placing sandbags just outside of the affected area so that it can be confined. Members should avoid direct contact with the spill and only attempt sandbagging measures if it can be done without coming into contact with the substance. Members should use appropriate personal protective equipment including latex gloves, eye protection and face masks to limit potential exposure to any contaminants.

Members shall evacuate the affected part of the facility until qualified personnel from the Real Estate Custodial Department can clean the spill. Members shall not attempt to clean up a sewage spill. Members shall immediately notify the On-Call Facilities Unit member via the Department Operations Center (DOC) at (415) 553-1071 to arrange for emergency services from the specified agency. After hours, holidays and weekends, the Facility Maintenance Unit can also be contacted through the DOC.

In the event that the spill causes the evacuation of an area where the station/unit receives incoming telephone calls, members should attempt to activate the call forwarding feature to direct incoming calls to an area of the facility that is not affected by the spill. Should the entire facility need to be evacuated or there is a problem with forwarding incoming telephone calls to another location, the Officer-in-Charge shall dedicate one of the unit's cellular telephones for communication and provide the DOC with the telephone number.

Fresh Water Spills:

What is a freshwater spill?

This is typically the result of a leaking fresh water supply line or buildup of rainwater inside the entrance(s) of the facility.

Procedure:

In the event of freshwater or rainwater spill, members can use a station mop to remove the water. In the event of a leaking fresh supply line or a quantity of rainwater that is beyond a member's capabilities, members should immediately notify the On-Call Facilities Unit member via the DOC at (415) 553-1071 during business hours as well as for any spills that occur after hours, or on holidays and weekends.

Notification to Bureau Chiefs:

In the event of a spill that is significant enough to impact the operation of a facility, the Chief of the affected bureau shall be notified via their bureau office or the DOC. 

Airport Bureau Facilities: 

Notification will be made to the Airport Maintenance Division though the Airport Duty Manager, rather than through the DOC.

/s/
WILLIAM SCOTT 
Chief of Police

Per DN 23-152, all sworn & non-sworn members shall electronically acknowledge this Department document in PowerDMS within (30) thirty calendar days of issuance. Members whose duties are relevant to this document shall be held responsible for compliance. Any questions regarding this policy should be sent to [email protected] who will provide additional information.