Water Treatment Plant Security Breach Raises Serious Questions

SACRAMENTO (CBS13) - Security experts say water treatment plants could be a top target of terrorists, but on Tuesday night two drunken people stumbled past a gate and entered a secured facility, but no alarms were tripped, and no one noticed until they called for help.

If they could get inside, CBS13 wanted to know, what would happen if somebody with more sinister motives got in?

"Yeah, it's a concern. How can it not be a concern to us?" said Sacramento City Councilman Darrell Fong.

Fong used to be a captain at the police department where he worked on homeland security issues.

"That's a closed facility. There's no reason for anybody to be in there," said Fong.

And the water plant next to Sac State is a known possible terror target.

"There's no doubt it is on the list," said Fong.

It's one of two facilities pumping drinking water to everyone in the city. The concern is clear and so are the questions. The answers? Those aren't so clear.

When asked about some of the security features, Sacramento Department of Utilities spokesperson Jessica Hess replied: "Unfortunately, because of its classification, I can't go into specifics."

CBS13 uncovered city documents detailing some specifics. The city allocated nearly $1.6 million for security and other facility improvements a few years back -- that's on top of $210,000 for security improvements after 9/11. That cash paid for more fencing, intrusion alarms and guard facilities. If there was an alarm system, it certainly didn't seem to be working during this incident.

"Does it look like you need to add security procedures or was one not working properly and needs to be shored up?" asked CBS13's Koula Gianulias.

"That's part of the investigation we're doing right now," said Hess.

There are no real answers and still plenty of questions about a major breach exposing a major vulnerability more than a decade after 9/11.

"Is it unusual? Yes. Has it happened before? Yes," said Fong.