Date: Fri 08-Jan-1999

Publication: Bee

Author: ANDYG

Quick Words:

NUSAR-dry-hydrants-dive-team

Full Text:

NUSAR Inspects Town's Dry Hydrants

(with photo)

BY ANDREW GOROSKO

Members of Newtown Underwater Search and Rescue (NUSAR) recently made their

annual inspection tour and performed maintenance, as needed, on the 28 "dry

hydrants" that are positioned at ponds throughout town to supply water for

firefighting by the town's five volunteer fire companies.

The dry hydrants provide firefighters with a network of water sources to

augment the water supplies that are carried on fire trucks. When necessary,

the water drawn from the dry hydrants is used to replenish fire tanker trucks

and to fill the portable water tanks erected at fire scenes.

Adrian van der Kroef, a lieutenant and acting secretary with NUSAR, said this

week members of the diving team spent about an hour at each of the dry

hydrants in November. The inspection tour found that four dry hydrants will

need repair work this spring, he said.

NUSAR is composed of divers and non-divers. The group does underwater rescue

work, finds lost objects, performs light salvage, makes mooring repairs and

does evidence recovery for police.

NUSAR does the dry hydrant inspection project for the Board of Fire

Commissioners which provides funding.

Dry hydrants include lengths of large-diameter metal or plastic pipe which

connect a pond to a vertical "standpipe" on shore. Using pumper trucks,

firemen draw water from the pond via the standpipe.

Although the intake pipes for dry hydrants are often positioned on private

property, the outlet pipes from which firemen draw water typically are within

a public right of way.

A flapper valve and water strainer positioned on the intake pipe keep foreign

matter out of the water stream, Mr van der Kroef said.

In their inspection of the 28 hydrants during three weekends in November,

light repairs were made on about seven of the dry hydrants, Mr van der Kroef

said. Work involved replacing worn end caps on standpipes, cleaning strainers,

installing supports for the standpipes, and cleaning out lengths of pipe, he

said.

The dry hydrant arrangement allows firefighters to draw water from frozen

ponds without the need to break through the ice. Dry hydrants are scattered

throughout town with facilities ranging from the Pootatuck River to Taunton

Pond to the Hundred Acres Road area, Mr van der Kroef said.

In some cases, NUSAR divers use air tanks to do maintenance work. In other

instances, only a snorkel is needed due to shallow water depths.