Inside the massive tunnel that carries water to Southern California

Inside the massive tunnel that carries water to Southern California

Thousands of feet below the snowy summit of Mt. San Jacinto, a formidable feat of engineering and grit makes life as we know it in Southern California possible. The 13-mile-long San Jacinto Tunnel was bored through the mountain in the 1930s by a crew of about 1,200 men who worked day and night for six years, blasting rock and digging with machinery. Completed in 1939, the tunnel was a cornerstone in the construction of the 242-mile Colorado Rive…

A rare glimpse inside the mountain tunnel that carries water to Southern California

In the 1930s, workers using explosives and machinery excavated a 13-mile tunnel beneath Mt. San Jacinto to bring Colorado River water to Southern California. The Metropolitan Water District recently offered visitors a look inside the tunnel, an engineering feat that is a key piece of the…