Driver Bursts Fire Hydrant on Lankershim Boulevard

At 7:15 a.m. Sunday, a caller alerted the Los Angeles Police and Fire Departments about a traffic incident with "city property involved" that occurred at the intersection of Lankershim Boulevard and Erwin Street in North Hollywood. An out-of-control car had sheared a fire hydrant and also knocked down what appeared to be pipe that fed telephone lines to nearby businesses.

When Patch came upon the crash scene, the police and fire units had not yet arrived, and the driver of the vehicle involved appeared to have left the scene. A damaged silver Mitsubishi wagon sat disabled as a fountain of water shot 30 feet into the air.

From the looks of the where the Mitsubishi impacted the fire hydrant and where it ended up, the vehicle must have traveled northbound on Lankershim Boulevard, then crossed over into the opposing lanes (going the wrong direction of travel) jumping onto the curb on the west side of Lankershim Boulevard, where it struck the fire hydrant head-on.

In the impact with the curb, the vehicle lost the front driver's side wheel, then slid with momentum onto the northwest corner of the intersection and stopped its travel in the lot of a drive-through dairy store. Fortunately, the dairy store was not yet open for business. The car's airbags had deployed, and the driver's side door was left open.

A passerby stopped and looked at the car, and he was asked if he was the owner of the vehicle or if he had witnessed the crash. He answered that he did not own the vehicle and he did not see the car crash.

Then a North Hollywood patrol unit stopped their police cruiser just north of the intersection to divert traffic from entering the affected area, and fire trucks from LAFD's Fire Station 60, based on Tujunga Avenue in North Hollywood, drove up.

The fire crew jumped out of the trucks and assessed the situation, and with a few tools, the crew quickly shut down the tall plume of water blasting out from the damaged fire hydrant base.

In the meantime, a North Hollywood LAPD patrol officer was calling the dispatcher and running the license plate of the wrecked and abandoned vehicle, trying to get information on the registered owner.

Several minutes later, another vehicle arrived on the scene and parked near the dairy store and three people exited. One of the patrol officers quickly engaged with the group, and requested that one of them, a man that looks to be in his 20s, to step aside and talk to the officer. The others, an older man that looks to be related (possibly the father), and a young woman (who looks to be his sister), are directed to stand off in another area of the dairy store property.

North Hollywood LAPD Officer Alex Martinez was asked if the younger man was the alleged driver, and he confirmed. Then Officer Martinez was asked how the police found him, and Martinez answered, "He lives nearby."

The other patrol officer continued to politely question the alleged driver, who was not named, and although his family members confirmed that they were indeed the father and sister of the alleged driver, they would not provide their names.

As the officer and the alleged driver talked, the man seemed to be distraught about the situation, and he would sometimes put his face into his open palms. His father and his sister attempted to say something to the young man, but the police officer would respectfully interrupt their actions.

Officer Martinez was asked if the incident was a "DUI" situation (driving under the influence of alcohol or a narcotic), and he said it didn't appear to be. But the Valley Traffic Division unit was not yet at the scene, and they would do a more in-depth investigation into the matter. LAPD's Valley Traffic Division is the city department that handles any incidents involving a vehicle.

From the appearance of the young man, he did not seem to be injured from the collision.