1. Pivotal steel rods on the new Bay Bridge are showing further signs of cracking, raising concerns of catastrophic failure during a quake, the Chron$ reports. Caltrans testing on one rod revealed that it showed widespread cracking. Caltrans has acknowledged that the rods in the $6.4 billion bridge’s main tower “were put at greater risk of cracking during processing, suffered damage in shipment, were left standing in corrosive water and then put under heightened stress when the tower was pulled back to keep it from leaning toward Oakland.” However, Caltrans has now run out of money to conduct further testing on the steel rods.
2. Five San Francisco police officers, including four who are still on the force, have been caught exchanging virulently racist and homophobic texts with each other, the Chron reports. The bigoted texts were discovered by prosecutors in the case of ex-SFPD Sergeant Ian Furminger, who was recently convicted on federal corruption charges. The four other officers, who are all still on duty, have all been with SFPD for more than a decade.
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3. Despite the intense drought, water agencies throughout California are declining to fine heavy water wasters even though state officials authorized penalties of up to $500 for “excessive watering of lawns, hosing down driveways and running decorative yard fountains with drinking water,” the AP reports (h/t Rough & Tumble).
