The following is a message from the LFD: With the approaching possibility of a severe snow storm, the Lakewood Fire Department is asking for your assistance.
Help us to help you by clearing a three foot circle of snow from around a fire hydrant on your block. A lot of times the fire hydrants are covered by snow conditions and plowing operations.
While you are shoveling your driveway or sidewalk, it will only take a few extra minutes to clear a hydrant in front of your house, or on your block. Please consider helping a neighbor with medical conditions or who are elderly, by adopting their hydrant as well. This simple act of kindness will benefit the entire neighborhood.
When seconds count for your home or for your neighbor’s home, every little bit helps the fire department and their response. During a fire, the Fire Department must quickly locate and gain a water supply from the closest hydrant. If a hydrant is buried by snow, it is difficult to find and valuable time is spent locating and digging the hydrant out. This delay in gaining water from a hydrant may disrupt the timely manner in which firefighters are able to fight the fire, allowing it to grow. A fire doubles in size every 20 seconds.
The Lakewood Fire Department thanks you for your participation and community service.
I would love to. I have a hydrant at my corner, the problem is the DPW plows all the snow right into it.
Simple solution:
Please ask the Public works dept to plow to the opposite corner…the one without the hydrant.
We can all work together Fire Dept, DPW, & the homeowner.
I already “adopted” a Kollel
They are just asking to remove the snow in a 3-4 foot area around the Hydrant. Not a hard task for all the able body kids in the neighborhood to complete.
Look, to all who have or are going to post why they shouldn’t have to or why someone else should do it, or just post silly comments:
Nobody is saying it’s your absolute responsibility. In a perfect world the Water comp. would take care of it, the plow wouldn’t go over them, etc. However, since this does not happen yet and untill it does, the hydrants are going to be covered. Unfortunately, even if you’re right, they’ll be blocked and it’s you the homeowner who is placed in a potentially dangerous situation. The LFD is simply suggesting you take the initiative to do something that can be the difference between life and death. When all is said and done, if the hydrants are covered at a critical time then blaming others will not make a difference.
Well jbw i get your point but I think they should tell the water company to do it.
Look we are asking if you can do just dig them out..we are not pushing blame on who the hydrant belongs to, We are asking to just help us out and your neighbors. Its a simple thing to do. I as a firefighter drive around my area and dig out what and where I can, it only takes a few minutes. Everyone is always putting it on someone else. “Its the Water Company, or it gets plowed in by Public Works” Please Stop the blame game and just do it..for a change. Help out your neighbors and your fire dept, a little goes a long way with us
Thanks
I don’t live in Lakewood but we have had tons of snow and recently had such a situation – there was a fire and it was so cold they had a very hard time clearing the snow to get to the hydrant. it took hours to get the fire out.
Thanks for having great suggestions – I must be a little challenged – but I can’t find a fire hydrant on my block – is that possible? My block is one of those that has no sidewalks – where would they put the hydrant in such a case?
9: Great Idea…what street are you located? I will take a ride and check it out!!
Question, what does a sidewalk have to do with a fire hydrant? Fire hydrants are not on sidewalks but near the street.