On July 29, 2014, a water main broke and flooded a landmark athletic arena at the University of California (UCLA) in Los Angeles. As a result, hundreds of cars were submerged and owners weren’t allowed to claim them until days later.
Corrosion and structural problems are both being blamed for the incident, however the city Department of Water and Power also said that outdated welding and engineering practices also played a large role in the rupture.
Joseph Ramallo, the agency spokesman, commented that the piping had not been scheduled for replacement, despite the fact that the riveted steel pipe was installed in 1958, and there were no signs of trouble before the pipe burst and blasted a 15-foot hole in Sunset Boulevard and sent a 30-foot geyser into the air.