Maintaining the facilities

But algae can cause other problems with the water system—problems that have nothing to do with taste or odor.

When it grows too tall, algae can break loose. Loose algae can wreak havoc on filter screens, where it clogs the pores and, with the pressure of millions of gallons of water behind it, can bend the screens. That happened at Lake Mathews and Lake Skinner, in Winchester, about two years ago, when the pressure from algae and trash against the screens caused dents that looked like cannonballs had hit them.

The teams, which cooperate on projects that would otherwise take too long to complete, occasionally go beyond Metropolitan's service area to check water supplies, said Gary Jewell, supervisor of Metropolitan's two different scuba groups. They've even been to Lake Mead, in Arizona, for sampling.

Treated-water reservoirs are covered with heavy plastic covers to help keep the alga growth down. The covers are inspected weekly for holes. If there are any, the maintenance divers go out to fix them.

The maintenance group dives daily, Jewell said, and it's always a bit different.

One week will find them clearing screens at the intake plant on Lake Havasu, and the next might find them checking out problems in one of the pipelines, he said.

The maintenance divers are usually mechanics hired from within Metropolitan ranks, whoh then get certified in diving, advanced life saving, first aid and other skills needed for the job.

"There are a couple of guys in the group who like to dive on the weekends," Jewel said. "Others see enough of it at work."

And, like their water quality counterparts, they've seen plenty. Maintenance divers delve into places the rest of the world wouldn't dream of—tubes and siphons in the canal that carry Colorado River water into Southern California and inside the pipelines.

What they find is sometimes closer to a nightmare than a vacation dream. With zero visibility in some of the reservoirs, working on underwater maintenance means working from memory. Mechanics look at pictures and diagrams of the equipment they will be fixing before they head underwater and, once they get there, a lot of the work is done by touch.

"We usually have a pretty good idea of where things are," said Frank McGinnis, a 23-year maintenance veteran and the trainer for both teams. "But you swim with your hands out in front of you and hope you don't run into something that will stick you in the face.

"You take a little bit more caution to make sure you don't get tangled (in equipment) and we bring a safety line to find our way out," he said.

No one has ever been lost, but occasionally people get a bit turned around. To make sure that situation doesn't become tragic, the divers have a rule.

"If we can read our gauges—most of the time we can—we use 1/3 of our air going in, and 1/3 coming out, with 1/3 for back-up," McGinnis said. "We have a pretty good safety record doing it that way."

No one has died on the job and the only accident was a few years ago when a water quality supervisor—not a regular diver— jumped off the boat in about two feet of water and broke his leg, McGinnis said.

All in a day's work

Sometimes the job mandates rescues and there have been some unusual ones over the years.

Divers recovered a remote control helicopter that a hobbyist crashed into a filter basin near the Jensen plant in San Fernando and an ultra-light aircraft from Lake Mathews. Several guns have been found at Lake Mathews, too. But only one weapon, found about 12 years ago, was connected to a crime. Divers found in one of the aqueduct siphons in the desert a .22-caliber rifle used by a man to murder his girlfriend. There was a trial and conviction.

More than likely, what they find is algae and other organic matter.

"We might come across dead stinky stuff that makes you want to hold onto your regulator mouthpiece a little tighter," Jewel said. "Like a pile of dead clams or something."

Divers tried to rescue a fawn caught in Live Oak Reservoir, at San Dimas. They didn't get there in time. And they once recovered the body of a fisherman who'd fallen into the Colorado River Aqueduct and drowned.

"That's not one of the favorite jobs to do," McGinnis said. "We also spent a week at Lake Mathews looking for three murder victims supposedly dumped there. We never did find anything on that one."

More common, though, is retrieving things lost at one of the five water filtration plants—parts from malfunctioning machines or tools accidentally dropped in a basin.

Sometimes, the divers themselves drop a tool while they are working. Sometimes it stays where it lands.

"We plan before a dive how deep we'll be going and how long we're going to stay there so if we're working in the deep water, the tools stay there until we plan another deep dive to go get them," McGinnis said. "Over the years we've lost small hand tools, and maybe haven't been able to go back for them for a few years.

"That's why we always try to borrow someone else's tools when we go down," he quipped.

Of the myriad of tasks they are expected to do, the divers' least favorite job is cleaning screens on the water intake towers, McGinnis said, because it's an exhausting job. A favorite is inspecting pipelines.

"We put more effort into that," McGinnis said. "There's more risk involved so everyone takes a little extra time with equipment. The worst case scenario is losing air supply. So we double up everything, with two complete sets of life support equipment for each diver."

During those jobs, two divers go down with a third on standby in case of emergency, he said. The divers communicate to those on the surface via microphones in their masks.

Despite the obstacles, the slime and the danger, the divers—both water quality and maintenance—say they enjoy their jobs.

"A good day in the field is just great," said Otsuka, from the water quality team.

"It's nice when it's hot," agreed McGinnis. "But there are days when we're standing out at Lake Mathews Tower at 2 o'clock in the morning waiting to get in the water.

"And that's not too exciting," he said.

But it's all in a day's work to keep the water flowing.

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