Hit And Run Driver Shears Fire Hydrant

A hit and run driver crashed into a fire hydrant at a busy shopping center in Santa Barbara to sending water into the air. It’s the second time in as many months the same fire hydrant has been hit.It happened around 1:30 on the 3800 block of State in the La Cumbre Plaza near the Marmalade Cafe. The water flooded the parking lot for several minutes until crews arrived to shut it off. Authorities called in Edison crews over concerns the water would run into underground electrical installations. Witnesses say the driver took off in an unknown direction.In November, another driver crashed into the same hydrant. That driver stopped to take a photo, then called police to tell them what happened. In this incident water spewed out for about 10 minutes before crews were able to fix the problem.