Arnold Schwarzenegger—champion bodybuilder, actor and former Governor of California—recently filmed himself and a companion filling in what he called a "giant pothole" near his Los Angeles home with a commercially available blacktop repair kit.
He posted the video to Twitter, where a lot of people took to the comments to air their own pothole-related grievances and thanking Schwarzenegger for filling the hole.
\u201cToday, after the whole neighborhood has been upset about this giant pothole that\u2019s been screwing up cars and bicycles for weeks, I went out with my team and fixed it. I always say, let\u2019s not complain, let\u2019s do something about it. Here you go.\u201d— Arnold (@Arnold) 1681244978
\u201c@Schwarzenegger Love to see it, former Gov. out fixing potholes.\u201d— Arnold (@Arnold) 1681244978
\u201c@Schwarzenegger @Bryant10TV the tarminator.\u201d— Arnold (@Arnold) 1681244978
\u201c@Schwarzenegger Nice job\ud83d\udc4f \n\nI did this the other day too, after a $1,100 tire repair. No thanks to @CountyofNapa.\u201d— Arnold (@Arnold) 1681244978
\u201c@Schwarzenegger Thanks Arnold. You might not have any money left if you do the rest of Los Angeles.\u201d— Arnold (@Arnold) 1681244978
He soon discovered a bit of a problem, though.
The city claimed it wasn't a pothole, but a service trench dug deliberately for utility work.
A spokesperson for the city said:
"This location is not a pothole. It’s a service trench that relates to active, permitted work being performed at the location by SoCal Gas, who expects the work to be completed by the end of May."
"As is the case with similar projects impacting City streets, SoCal Gas will be required to repair the area once their work is completed."
A few people also critiqued the actual patch job, saying it wouldn't last.
\u201c@Schwarzenegger Cold asphalt repair. Will probably last a few days, didn't clean the hole and apply sealer to the bottom and edges before filling, no sign of a punner being used, and I have never repaired a road but even I understand the basics.\u201d— Arnold (@Arnold) 1681244978
\u201c@Schwarzenegger Cool. But this is all wrong. In order to make pre-packaged asphalt to work properly, the area must be tack-coated, then the asphalt must be heated to activate the oil and emulsion in order for the patch to adhere to the area as well as itself.\n\nI do asphalt work for a living.\u201d— Arnold (@Arnold) 1681244978
Schwarzenegger's representative and SoCal Gas planned to issue an update that disputed the city's story.
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