Richmond hosts water treatment plant tour one year after water crisis

Jan 5, 2026 - 21:25

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Richmond hosts water treatment plant tour one year after water crisis

RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) — The city of Richmond finally opened its doors for a tour of the water treatment plant, one year after a major water system failure.

On Monday, Jan. 5, the Department of Public Utilities (DPU) gave a guided look at the facility and a panel discussion focused on lessons learned, system improvements and ongoing efforts to strengthen the city’s drinking water infrastructure.

The panel, featuring Mayor Danny Avula and DPU Director Scott Morris, emphasized three key phases of change: infrastructure, staff and a shift in culture.

Richmond water treatment plant tour a year after crisis (Photo: Mark Morales, 8News)

“I can't say enough about what [Morris] and the team have done to really drive a new culture,” Avula said. “They not only rewrote 50-plus standard operating procedures but are doing quarterly exercises that they instituted to really practice emergency situations, building relationships with regional colleagues and doing regional tabletops.”

In 2025, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Virginia Department of Health (VDH) outlined several troubling discoveries of out-to-date equipment and faulty infrastructure.

Morris, along with other DPU employees, showcased key pieces of equipment that were immediately fixed after the water crisis. This includes a new substation as a second power source and an automatic transfer system with a switchgear and two backup generators as a failsafe. The original switch gear failed to transfer between power sources during last year's storm.

Richmond water treatment plant tour a year after crisis (Photo: Mark Morales, 8News)

Richmond water treatment plant tour a year after crisis (Photo: Mark Morales, 8News)Richmond water treatment plant tour a year after crisis (Photo: Mark Morales, 8News)

Richmond water treatment plant tour a year after crisis (Photo: Mark Morales, 8News)

Other key infrastructure improvements include:

Upgrades to SCADA and filter uninterruptible power supply (UPS) systems to increase runtime capacity
Replacement and repair of filter effluent valves
Ongoing integration of backup generators
Repair of leaks and construction of additional secondary containment
Redesign of overflow pumping systems
Replacement or repair of finished water pumps

“I get routine status updates. I keep the mayor, keep the CAO informed of any type of operational issues that may have an impact. and to date, we have had none. We've been fully prepared, which is exceptional,” Morris said.

8News also obtained records from VDH that show other changes inside the plant.

Both Avula and Morris said 93% of all internal and external recommendations (from the EPA, VDH, HNTB and SEH) were completed, with remaining tasks tied to planned capital infrastructure projects.