Pasadena water facilities pass unscathed through Southern California earthquake.

LOS ANGELES -- The earthquake that rocked Southern California Friday did not damage any water facilities in Pasadena, which last week sold $10.2 million of water revenue bonds through competitive bid.

There was "not one water leak in the whole city of Pasadena," Mary Bradley, finance director of the city, said yesterday.

The bond issue, which was won by a group led by Dean Witter Reynolds Inc., will finance improvements to the water system, including construction and expansion of groundwater wells and reservoirs.

Last Friday's earthquake measured 6.0 on the Richter scale and was centered a few miles northeast of various San Gabriel Valley communities, including Pasadena, Sierra Madre, Monrovia, and Arcadia. While Friday's quake was strong, the cities were spared major structural damage.

A 6.0 quake falls on the margin between a moderate and major earthquake. By comparison, the 1989 earthquake that struck Santa Cruz and the San Francisco Bay area measured 7.1, making it 10 times stronger than Friday's shaker.

Pasadena's water revenue bonds, the water division's first public debt offering, are rated Aa by Moody's Investors Service, AA-minus by Standard & Poor's Corp., and AA by Fitch Investors Service Inc.

"We feel quite comfortable with our bond rating," said Rebecca Bachman, a Fitch analyst. The rating agency checked with Pasadena officials Friday and learned that there was "no damage to the water facilities," she added.

Ms. Bradley noted that Pasadena also has lease financings outstanding in connection with its city hall and library. "Those [buildings] are fine," she said, despite some exterior damage. The domed city hall building, for example, suffered some exterior cracking, she said.

Damage estimates from the quake remain incomplete, but tentative figures for all the affected cities are about $20 million. That number -- covering private and public property -- is expected to grow.

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