If an earthquake strikes San Francisco, some of the city's western neighborhoods could be left vulnerable to additional dangers during a fire, according to a grand jury report.
The auxiliary water supply system, which provides water to help extinguish gas fires and is allegedly seismically sound, does not reach the Outer Sunset, Outer Richmond and Bayview-Hunters Point sections on the city's southeastern side.
Additional sections of the system are scheduled to cover those neighborhoods in 35 years. But experts say that there's a 72% chance of an earthquake measuring 6.7 or more hitting the city within 24 years, which raises concerns about the city's preparedness for an emergency.
Because of the high risk of earthquake, the grand jury recommended that city officials speed up construction of the auxiliary water supply system by 2043. The panel also called for expanding the fire department's fleet of trucks which can transfer pressurized water long distances.
"We basically can make our own water system going miles," said fire department spokesman Jonathan Baxter.
He added that there are hoses thousands of feet long that could be put to use as well as fire boats, which he said add "another layer of protection."