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Water gushes down streets in drought-stricken LA

Posted by: Maven on September 24, 2009 at 7:04 am

From the Fresno Bee:

“Torrents of water swept cars off streets and barbecues out of backyards in Los Angeles in recent weeks, but the floods are coming from the ground rather than the sky.

Not a drop of rain has fallen on the city since June 5, according to the National Weather Service, but aging water pipes have blown up at a rate of more than one a day. Residents of the drought-stricken city are getting angry, muddy and wet as they watch millions of gallons of water wash away.

The number of breaks – 36 during the first three weeks of September – isn’t unusual for a city the size of Los Angeles, said James McDaniel, senior assistant general manager with the Department of Water and Power. Rather it’s the severity of the breaks, including one that created a sinkhole so big it nearly swallowed a fire truck.

“It’s not what causes a break but why did the break break in such a way that it causes this much damage,” McDaniel told a City Council panel Wednesday. His agency has appointed an expert panel to study the city’s geology, its 7,200 miles of pipeline, its pattern of water use and any other potential causes. …”

Read more from the Fresno Bee by clicking here.

September 24, 2009 · Filed Under Southern California

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