Terminator actor Arnold Schwarzenegger wins praise from neighbours for fixing pothole in Los Angeles

Hollywood icon Arnold Schwarzenegger both surprised and thrilled his neighbours earlier this week by taking a hands-on approach to fixing a large pothole in his Los Angeles neighbourhood. Posting on his official Twitter account, Schwarzenegger, who is best known for his roles in the Terminator film series as well as Predator and Aftermath, revealed he had filled the giant hole which had appeared in the Brentwood area of LA with a little help from his team.

Alongside a one minute video showing him filling the hole with tarmac, he wrote: “Today, after the whole neighbourhood has been upset about this giant pothole that’s been screwing up cars and bicycles for weeks, I went out with my team and fixed it. I always say, let’s not complain, let’s do something about it. Here you go.”

In the video, a driver pulls up alongside where Schwarzenegger and his team are working and is clearly overjoyed that they are sorting the problem, saying “oh my god, thank you”. Schwarzenegger replies “you’re welcome. You have to do it yourself. This is crazy. For three weeks I’ve been waiting for this hole to be closed.”

It seems not everyone may be pleased with the actions of the 75-year-old acting legend, however. Officials told NBC Los Angeles that the hole was not a pothole at all, and was actually an essential service trench used by a gas company.

A spokesperson for the City of Los Angeles told the publication: "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.” 

The day after Schwarzenegger covered the hole, SoCalGas sent crews to level the patch off with compaction equipment to provide more strength to the temporary paving, according to ABC7 as they said his road patch wouldn't really work. NationalWorld attempted to contact SoCal Gas but had not been able to speak to them at the time of writing.

Daniel Ketchell, a spokesperson for Schwarzenegger, told NBC Los Angeles that Brentwood residents had made repeated requests to officials for repairs since winter storms created potholes and cracks on roads. He had also not responded to NBC’s request for a comment on the official’s statement at the time of writing.

SoCalGas said they had previously carried out work to upgrade the pipeline system on the road which was completed in January. Crews then placed temporary paving over the excavation, with the intention of adding permanent paving later, but the recent storms and heavy rain had delayed the laying of this permanent paving. The utility company told ABC7 they hope to complete that paving by the end of this week.

Schwarzenegger is not the only celebrity to take matters of community interest into his own hands. Last year, singer Rod Stewart also filled potholes near his home in Harlow, Essex. The 78-year-old said he was doing the job himself because “no-one can be bothered to do it".

He also posted a video on his Instagram account showing him completing the work, along with a little help. In the video he said: “He said: "This is the state of the road near where I live in Harlow and it's been like this for ages. So me and the boys thought we would come and do it ourselves."

The star also added that filling holes was “good for the soul”.