78 years ago today the St. Francis Dam burst, sending 12 billion gallons of water into a small town near Saugus. The flood was so powerful and so swift that the number killed has always been approximate — around 450 people died. The dam's collapse was blamed on the LADWP's head, the brilliant William Mulholland; he's the one in the black hat surveying the dam's wreckage in the photo above. more ›

While recent events have reminded us in the harshest, most disturbing ways about the dangers and necessities of water, in Los Angeles it’s generally all too easy to forget the virtually seamless infrastructure that makes this town’s existence possible. more ›