La Vida Mineral Springs Tank: Vandalism or Deterioration?

As noted here several times, the old water tank and associated surviving elements from the historic La Vida Mineral Springs resort on the Brea side of Carbon Canyon managed to remain hidden by overgrown bushes and weeds for many years until the Freeway Complex Fire of November 2008 scorched the area and exposed the tank to view . . . and defacing.

While some good samaritan(s) out there has/have been commendably covering up the many instances of graffiti applied to the tanks and concrete bases over the last six years, it now looks as if there has either been vandalism or creeping deterioration leading to the collapse of a good part of one of the bases.

To some people, this is probably much ado about nothing.  The tank and bases are old and have served no practical purpose for decades.  For others (this blogger included), though, these are the only real visual reminders of La Vida, which had a long and interesting history that still resonates with a good many folks.

In any case, it's sad to see what is, of course, inevitable, if this is a matter of deterioration and sad for other reasons if deliberate.