"I can assure you, it will be expensive," he said today.

Water officials had drained one reservoir and were draining the second damaged structure into a county water treatment plant this morning. Pavao said the reservoirs do not pose a threat to Waimea residents living about a mile and a half downslope from the structures.

Pavao said there are no restrictions on water use in effect for the Waimea area because a third 50-million-gallon reservoir remains intact.

Water supply officials and state engineers found the leaks last week during post-earthquake inspections, Pavao said.

Initial reports suggested the walls of the reservoirs had cracked in the earthquakes, but Pavao said he believes the leaks probably are coming from rubber-like construction joints that are between the 20-foot concrete panels that make up the dams.

Those joints are designed to expand and contract with changes in temperature and pressure. Pavao said engineers expect to do additional inspections of the damage today.

Waikoloa Reservoir 1 and 2 were still being drained today, with No. 2 scheduled to be drained completely and repaired first.

No. 1 was being drained today into the department's water treatment plant, where it will be treated and distributed for use, Pavao said.

He said the bubbling at the base of the reservoir that had indicated a leak has stopped after the reservoir was half drained, and a federal Bureau of Reclamation inspector determined the structure does not pose any threat.

The water emerging from the treatment plant can be stored in a 4-million-gallon "clear water reservoir," which holds enough water to supply Waimea for about two days at normal usage, Pavao said.