Three days ago, I posted a photo of the Los Angeles river as seen from the 9th St/Olympic Viaduct before it was concreted over as a consequence of the heavy rains that inundated Southern California in early March 1938. This photo show us just how heavy those rains were. We’re looking east along W. 43rd Place at Garthwaite Ave, southeast of the USC campus. Judging from the guy pushing the car on the right, the water looks like it reached waist height. But I have to wonder: What is the school bus doing there? With flood water measuring in feet, did that bus driver really think it was a regular school day?
This is roughly how that view looked in August 2022.