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Many fire hydrants defective
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Posted on Jan 26 2006
Many fire hydrants on Saipan have been found to be defective and are no longer operational, the Saipan Tribune learned yesterday.
Of the 95 fire hydrants that have already been checked by firefighters and fire cadets, about 25 to 30 have been found to be no longer in service, according to Firefighter 2 Anthony R. Babauta.
Babauta said the defective hydrants are too old and usually the thread valves are broken.
The valves have been damaged because some agencies or companies used other tools to get access to water, Babauta added.
Babauta and Firefighter 2 Joe Pangelinan have been conducting hydrant maintenance on the island since mid-December at the instruction of then Fire Division acting director Francis Taimanao.
The two firefighters are being assisted by six fire cadets—Rommel Iginoef, John Camacho, Fidel Atalig, Daniel Taitaguie, John Feliseman, and Molly Retan. The cadets volunteered their time while awaiting the opening of the fire academy.
The Saipan Tribune spotted yesterday afternoon Babauta’s group cleaning and painting the fire hydrants along Beach Road.
Babauta said they have been doing the maintenance from 8am to 4pm and that they already checked about 95 hydrants.
He said the group, which is separated into two teams, already inspected 55 of those from San Antonio and Garapan along Beach Road.
The teams had completed the north side of the island—from As Matuis all the way to Lower Base.
The heavy rains over the past two weeks somehow delayed their operation, Babauta said.
The teams check if the hydrants are in good condition and if there is water. They cut the tall grass around the hydrants and paint the hydrants and metal barriers with red and yellow. Those out of service are painted red.
The funding for the paint came from the federal State Assistance Program.
Babauta said many hydrants need to be changed already as they are already old and worn out.
Upon completion of their operation, he said they would sit down with their superiors and discuss how to fix or replace the defective hydrants.
Babauta and the cadets said they enjoy their work.
“It’s not a day to day job. But for the meantime, we are doing this maintenance. It’s worth it…for the service to the community,” he said.
