When a battery fire at the nearby Metropolitan Water District’s F.E. Weymouth Water Treatment Plant in La Verne broke out on Tuesday, it triggered a mandatory evacuation order that affected cafe owner Bobak Tehranirad. At the time, he thought nothing of it, thinking it would be a momentary disruption. 

“We thought maybe [it would be for] just half a day on Tuesday, so we said okay, we can handle that,” he said. 

But half a day turned into two, then three days, with no real answers yet about when it would be safe for businesses to reopen. His worries are mounting as he closely tracks news sources and social media, expecting he won’t be opening again today or possibly Friday. He has also been calling the local fire marshal to get updates.

“It’s hurting us every day that we can’t open,” Tehranirad said. “If we can't open the weekend, it's gonna really be devastating for us.”

Tehranirad owns Haven Haus Cafe, which opened just three months ago at The Commons at La Verne shopping center. His cafe, an ice cream shop, supermarkets and other businesses in that center have been among the hardest hit by the evacuation order. After crews dealt with the initial explosion and fire at the treatment plant, another battery began overheating. Firefighters are now working to cool it down to avoid another spark-up. The batteries power a solar array system at the plant that helps to keep the water treatment operations running.

Tehranirad says he employs 100 people across his cafe locations, including Rancho Cucamonga, and 30 of them are at the La Verne location. 

“We just feel bad telling people we can't open, you can't come in for your shifts,” he said. “So it's having an impact on everybody.”

La Verne City Council member Steven Johnson said he expects local businesses around the fire to file claims. “I’m sure there will be claims made against the Metropolitan Water District, being that it’s their responsibility,” Johnson said.

Claims can be filed by residents and businesses through a form provided by The Metropolitan Water District. Download the form (PDF)

The form asks claimants to provide their contact information; when, where, and how the damage or injury occurred; the Metropolitan action or omission they believe caused it; and the damages and amount claimed. Claimants should include documentation supporting that amount, such as photographs, receipts, bills, invoices or repair estimates, as well as the names and addresses of any witnesses. The signed form may be emailed, mailed or delivered to Metropolitan’s board executive secretary. Claims involving real property or other types of losses generally must be filed within one year.

Mayor Tim Hepburn said that the “goal is to open, but we can't until we get a clear signal that it is safe.”

“There are experts looking at the batteries and the solution and hopefully coming to a resolution on this,” Hepburn said. “The most important thing is the safety of our residents and our staff.”

Among the other businesses closed is the Vons supermarket at The Commons at La Verne shopping center. A spokesperson for Albertsons, which owns Vons, emailed a statement saying that the safety of our associates and customers is our top priority.”

“We will continue to follow guidance from local authorities and will reopen the store when it is safe to do so.” They expressed their appreciation for their “customers’ patience and understanding.”

And the mandatory evacuation order put a big day on hold, not only for a new business at The Commons, but also for residents eager to scope it out. La Verne resident Mark Olthoff was set to do a big grand opening of his new Grocery Outlet at The Commons on Thursday, but that had to be put on hold due to the continued fire risk from overheating batteries at the treatment plant. 

The store is just on the edge of the “red zone,” he said, where the evacuation zone was set up as a safety precaution as firefighters worked to cool down the batteries. 

Olthoff said they were planning to open at 7 a.m. There were around 20 workers ready to begin serving customers, and they had a celebration ready to go with deejays, he said.

“We had a big line, this morning, of people waiting to get in,” he told La Verne Daily News. Police had barricaded the entrances to the shopping center, but some people were so eager to get to the store that they moved aside some of the barricades to get in, according to Olthoff. 

“It’s unfortunate. Bad timing,” he said. But Olthoff, who lives half a mile away from the store, said that safety is the “main priority.”