EWEB Partners with Eugene School District 4J to Celebrate New Kennedy Middle School Emergency Water Station Site
EWEB Commissioner Tim Morris and Eugene School District 4J Superintendent Miriam Mickelson cut the inaugural ribbon to the Kennedy Middle School Emergency Water Station before community members practiced filling water containers.
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The Churchill community has a new resiliency resource: an Emergency Water Station at Kennedy Middle School. The site will be used to distribute water if a natural disaster like an earthquake disrupts regular service.
On Saturday, Sept. 27, EWEB, the city's Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) and Eugene School District 4J staff set up the station and invited the public to practice filling water containers and learn more about emergency preparedness.
“Our community relies almost entirely on the McKenzie River for drinking water. A major earthquake or wildfire could threaten the reliability of that single source for weeks or longer,” said EWEB Water Operations Manager Mike Masters. “By completing this network of emergency water stations, we’re building resilience into our community — ensuring that families, schools and neighborhoods can still access water when it matters most.”
Setup volunteers worked with EWEB to assemble piping to distribute water in the northeast corner of the Kennedy Middle School Parking lot. Signage was placed to route attendees through the system. The setup was a shortened version of the full water distribution manifold, which allowed the event to take up less space, while still giving attendees a feel for where the station is located, where to park, and how to utilize the station before a real deployment.
Saturday’s demonstration event kicked off at 9:30 a.m. with remarks by project partners, followed by a ribbon cutting.
EWEB Commissioner Tim Morris and Eugene School District 4J Superintendent Miriam Mickelson are among the first to fill up emergency water containers following the short speeches and ribbon cutting.
EWEB distributed free, three-gallon water containers to attendees. Preparedness-related coloring sheets and stickers were also on hand for families.
The station — the seventh and final — marks the completion of a multi-year investment in water resiliency. Together, the stations have the capacity to provide immediate and reliable access to two gallons of water per person per day to everyone in Eugene following a disaster.
“The emergency water partnership makes families and our community more resilient," 4J Superintendent Miriam Mickelson said. "Locating this resource in schools supports our families and their neighbors in challenging times, at a familiar and friendly location. Eugene School District 4J is happy to play a role."
EWEB completed the Emergency Water Station Program within a budget of approximately $4.2 million. This innovative emergency water solution was made possible through partnerships with the YMCA, City of Eugene, Lane County, the Eugene Science Center and local school districts. By building facilities on partner properties and sharing resources like power connections, EWEB has minimized financial impacts on customers while enhancing community resiliency.
With this site, Eugene now has seven fully operational Emergency Water Stations strategically located across the city. The Kennedy Middle School station completes the current network, ensuring broad coverage and enhanced resilience for the entire community.
In the event of a disaster, EWEB will mobilize at Emergency Water Station sites. Residents in need of water should bring a container to fill and disinfect water before use.
Residents are encouraged to identify the location of the Emergency Water Station nearest their home and to join the Pledge to Prepare Program to prep for extended, emergency-related outages of water or electric service.
The Oregon Department of Emergency Management (OEM) advises Oregonians to become “2 Weeks Prepared.” This means having a plan and enough food, water and supplies to survive for at least two weeks following a large-scale disaster. EWEB’s Pledge to Prepare Program makes it easy and affordable for residents to gather needed supplies.
More information about Emergency Preparedness can be found here: eweb.org/EmergencyPrep.
Related Programs
Emergency Water Stations
We are working with community partners to develop an emergency water supply program that includes several permanent distribution sites located throughout the community using groundwater wells, as well as mobile water trailers.
Your drinking water quality
Access to clean water is vital to our community. That is why we work hard to deliver water that meets or exceeds all state and federal health standards.
Water Reliablity Projects
We're making investments to prepare, replace and maintain our community's water system.
