LOCAL : IBM Offices in L.A. Flooded
Four floors of a 45-story downtown high-rise occupied by International Business Machines Corp. were flooded early today by an air-conditioning water pipe that burst, authorities said.
The floors in the Wells Fargo Center at 355 S. Grand Ave. were drenched with about 40,000 gallons of water, standing 2 inches deep in some places.
The 1 1/2-inch pipe apparently ruptured on the 16th floor and the water flowed to the 15th, 14th and 12th floors before the flow was shut off, City Fire Department spokesman Jim Wells said.
The flooding was reported to the fire department at 6:25 a.m. and six fire companies responded, shutting off the water and beginning the cleanup, Wells said.
The cause of the pipe rupture and the extent of the damage to the IBM sales, education and corporate offices on the four affected floors were not immediately known.
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