El Centro, CA — Imperial County departments recently coordinated assistance for residents of Lark Spa Mobile Home & RV Park near Niland who were affected by an extended electrical disruption associated with unsafe and unpermitted electrical work at the property.
On July 9, 2026, the Imperial County Planning & Development Services Department inspected the property after receiving a complaint regarding electrical wiring located on the ground and within an open trench. An Attention–Action Required Notice was issued directing the park operator to stop the unpermitted work, de-energize the affected electrical line and obtain the required permit before completing the repairs.
The notice addressed the unsafe electrical installation. The County did not direct the operator to disconnect electrical service throughout the entire park.
On July 17, the Imperial County Executive Office was contacted by United for Justice Inc. and informed that residents had been experiencing an extended loss of electricity. County leadership immediately began coordinating a response among the Department of Social Services, Planning & Development Services, Fire Department and Office of Emergency Services, Behavioral Health Services, Public Administrator/Area Agency on Aging, and Workforce and Economic Development.
The Department of Social Services redirected two employees to the park that afternoon to assess conditions and speak directly with affected residents. Staff determined that 27 of the park’s 77 spaces had been affected. Most residents had temporarily relocated with relatives or to hotels, while nine residents remained at the park and were staying in its air-conditioned community room.
County departments provided or coordinated the following assistance:
- Delivered 20 cots to residents remaining at the property.
- Assessed residents for CalFresh, Medi-Cal and other available public-benefit programs.
- Activated prepared-meal assistance for eligible CalFresh recipients.
- Coordinated follow-up through Behavioral Health Services and Adult Protective Services.
- Evaluated residents for available housing, transportation, healthcare and supportive services.
- Contacted the Imperial Irrigation District, which confirmed that the disruption involved customer-owned electrical infrastructure and was not an IID system outage.
“Once the County Executive Office was notified that residents were without electricity, departments mobilized that same day to assess conditions and connect residents with available assistance,” said Imperial County Executive Officer Kathleen Lang. “We appreciate the employees who responded quickly and worked across departments to support the affected residents.”
The property owner or operator was responsible for hiring a qualified contractor, obtaining the required permits and completing the electrical repairs necessary to bring the property into compliance.
