Broken Sprinkler Floods Parking Lot

A broken sprinkler caused minor flooding in a parking lot at the Great Mall in Milpitas Wednesday morning, a fire battalion chief said.

A fire protection sprinkler company was doing a routine sprinkler test when a valve malfunctioned and flooded a parking lot around 9 a.m. at the mall, at 447 Great Mall Dr.

The affected lot is near the Century 20 movie theater and the Outback Steakhouse restaurant, said Battalion Chief Melvin Vaughn.

The fire department came out to unclog drains and let the sunshine soak up the rest of the water, Vaughn said.

The water was streaming out for only a couple of minutes, Great Mall spokesman Scott Dobrowski said.

"It didn't disrupt anyone's shopping," he said.

—Bay City News Service