So what do you do when there is a fire and you have no fire hydrants? The answer is simple, you find alternative water sources and determine a way to get it to the fire ground. This process is called rural water supply and has been developed to be very effective in areas that that do not have access to municipal water supplies which usually have fire hydrants. Here at Chestnut Ridge Volunteer Fire Co., we specialize in these types of water operations as we have no fire hydrants in our first due area.
When dispatched on a fire, our first out Engine is 501 which holds about 1040 gallons of water which equates to 5-10 minutes of actual firefighting depending on conditions inside. This doesn’t leave much time for setting up water operations. Once Engine 501determines there is an actual fire, Engine-Tanker 503 is also dispatched along with Tanker Support 504. The soul purpose of these two pieces of equipment is to get water to the fire ground. Engine-Tanker 503 will respond directly to the scene of the fire with 2500 gallons of water and a folding tank (which can be seen on the pictures below: large yellow pool). Fire fighters will then strategically place the folding tank so that the Engine can access it and then dump all 2500 gallons of water into it. While this is going on, Tanker Support 504 will be making its way to the water source. This can be anything from a pond, to a stream, to large underground tanks that are strategically placed throughout the district, to even a swimming pool. Once a water source is established Engine-Tanker 503 along with other available Engines and Tankers in the area will continue to shuttle between the fire ground and the water source; filling its tank and then dropping it back off at the fire ground for as long as water is needed. Usually there will multiple water sources and tanker operations set up for one fire ground operation. |
