About That Flood Warning for Los Angeles?
There is water controversy embedded in our history in Los Angeles. Our water wars. Seemingly everyone has a take on it, mostly all about getting the water from upstate. There have been books, movies (see Chinatown), and articles galore with famous names like Mulholland. Battles, scandals, and bribes, so LA could be a big thirsty city.
Yet tonight we face the opposite. So much water it can tear apart streets and homes, float cars and debris for miles. Briefly put, in 1862 we had a flood from rains of a volume that beggars the imagination. Imagine California getting hit with 120 inches in about 40 days. Those were floods that impacted California, Oregon, and Nevada. Then in 1938, we had devastating floods that killed many. That triggered the concrete lining of our local creeks and the LA River itself.
Here is the irony. The nature of the concrete channel is that all that floodwater is quickly and cleanly sent right back into the ocean it evaporated from. It also means our declining groundwater basins are denied new waters. So to save ourselves from flood, we make it far harder to be self-sufficient in water.
The forecast warnings are a heads up, although few of us expect anything like 1938. Mostly because that river will ensure we are spared. This links to a good article on the river before it was paved over.
On that river lies a pedestrian bridge. The La Kretz Bridge, which features a unique sculptured profile for its cables and the walkway. One day I explored it with my camera. A few of those images follow.