Readers React: L.A. gets the water infrastructure it pays for

To the editor: Mayor Eric Garcetti said it was a poorly engineered pipe joint dating to the 1950s that failed last week and flooded the UCLA campus with millions of gallons of water. (“Garcetti on UCLA pipeline break: ‘This will not be the last one,’” Aug. 4)

I’d say a complexly crafted connection of underground pipes that served the city well for about 60 years is a pretty darn good example of American engineering ingenuity, knowing that those engineers worked with limited resources, just as their successors do today.

Garcetti shouldn’t bash the engineers. Instead, he should blame elected officials for refusing to sustain water rates over the decades at levels that could support our key infrastructure.

It takes money — a lot of it — to keep the water flowing in Los Angeles.

Carlos Clark, Valencia

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To the editor: The good news: When a 30-inch water main breaks, you don’t need an excavator to get to the pipe.

The bad news: You need a submarine.

John Rotunni, Glendora