An impromptu fountain at Shattuck and Center.

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.

Lance Knobel (Berkeleyside co-founder) has been a journalist for nearly 40 years. Much of his career was in business journalism. He was editor-in-chief of both Management Today, the leading business magazine...