Dozens of Temecula Schools Lack Earthquake Certification

Dozens of Temecula school buildings lack the certification required to ensure earthquake safety, according to a report released today by California Watch, a non-profit investigative journalism organization.

Forty-three Temecula Valley Unified School District construction projects never received certification under the Field Act, an 80-year-old state law intended to ensure school buildings can survive earthquakes.

The nonprofit watchdog group’s 19-month investigation uncovered holes in enforcement of seismic safety regulations for public schools all over the state. To read more about it, click here.

At least 18 Temecula schools had uncertified buildings; several sites had two or more. and  high schools each had four uncertified buildings. , and elementary schools and the district offices each had three. , , and elementary schools and each had two. and middle schools, , , , , and elementary schools and each have one uncertified project.

To see a map of the schools and their related earthquake hazards, click here.

Temecula officials in charge of facilities were on vacation this week, according to a receptionist at the district office. Other officials failed to return calls and emails.

Details about the problems that prevented the schools from getting certified were not immediately available.

At least 20,000 projects in California – from minor fire alarm upgrades to major construction of new classrooms – were completed without getting a final safety certification, which is required by law. Six out of 10 public schools in the state have at least one uncertified building project, California Watch found.

State Law under the 1933 Field Act requires these certifications, and the Division of the State Architect is charged with ensuring every project gets them. For the last 20 years, the report shows, the regulator stood idle while its own supervisors red-flagged projects for safety defects.

“This is a crisis,” said Steve Castellanos, the California state architect from 2000 to 2005. “I think there has been a failure in the system.”

The State Architect’s Office was aware of school construction problems for years, documents show. For example, in 2006, the office found inadequate testing of construction materials, an increase in unapproved and unqualified inspections of school sites, and buildings that were “completed with other dangerous construction flaws,” according to State Architect records and e-mails.

School board members, builders, architects and inspectors could face felony charges for failing to meet the act’s requirements. Officials could be held criminally liable if a student or staff member is hurt or killed by earthquake damage at a school without Field Act certification.

This story was produced using data provided to Patch by California Watch, the state's largest investigative reporting team and part of the Center for Investigative Reporting. Read more about Patch's collaboration with California Watch by clicking here.