Berkeleysider Steve McConnell reports:
A wayward motorist apparently decapitated a fire hydrant this morning at the northeast corner of Shattuck and Center, resulting in a temporary geyser on an already drizzly morning. Berkeley police and firefighters responded quickly, with three firefighters huddling beneath a tarp next to the 30+-foot gusher to shut off the flow shortly before 9:00, to the applause of downtown pedestrians and bus-stop onlookers.