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Description
In the wake of the October 17, 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake, Caltrans commissioned an oral history project to document the personal and professional experiences of Caltrans employees who worked to restore the State's damaged transportation system. At the time of this interview Jim Larsen was a Public Information Officer for Caltrans at the District 11 office in San Diego. When the Loma Prieta earthquake happened, Larsen was watching the World Series on television and the signal went out. He then search his satellite system and found a television station in Oakland and saw the Bay Bridge collapse and Cypress Structure. After seeing the images on television Larsen realized the significance of the event and the next morning on the eighteenth he went into the office and contacted Robert (Bob) Halligan in the Public Information Office for Caltrans in the District 4 Office in San Francisco; offering his services. Larsen did not get a response until three days after the earthquake and was then told to come to San Francisco. Larsen drove up with another Caltrans Public Information Officer, Steve Saville. When they both arrived at the District 4 office in San Francisco their main duty was to answer the phones and to talk to the media. Larsen spent two weeks working in San Francisco and during his time there he visited San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge and the Cypress Structure and describes his experiences and observations.
Type
sound
Format
Original Audio cassette
Extent
1 Tape of 1 00:18:00
Identifier
casadt_000177
Language
English
Provenance
California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) California Revealed is supported by the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act, administered in California by the State Librarian.
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