(Skakerman)
Hey, you rebels out there, thinking you’re just too good for the laws the rest of us live by and decide to park in front of a hydrant. You might want to reconsider because not only could you end up with a destroyed vehicle, but you’re potentially risking lives if firefighters need access to that hydrant.
The driver of a BMW coupe is facing some repair work after leaving it parked in front of a fire hydrant — a very inconvenient location for firefighters battling an eight-alarm fire in East Boston last night, reports the Boston Globe.
Firefighters couldn’t waste time in getting water to their colleagues despite such a big obstacle, so they simply punched out the cars windows to run a firehose through and access the hydrant.
But even that wasn’t enough — the way the hose had to snake through the car’s windows created a kink that slowed down the water heading toward the raging blaze. Firefighters then had to lift the car slightly and move it.
While you might be nodding or even chuckling, thinking the car’s owner deserves it, there’s nothing funny about getting in the way of emergency services, a Boston Fire Department spokesman says.
“The general reaction is that some people find humor in it,” the spokesman noted. “But it’s really a serious situation. That water supply is the lifeblood of the engine company. The engine carries 750 gallons – and that could be gone in just two minutes. With that number of alarms, every hydrant is important,” adding, “There really is nothing funny about it.”
He says firefighters don’t want to damage private property, but they will if they have to to protect lives. So no matter if you think you won’t be in the way, just don’t park there.
“People always think it will never happen to me. But fire is so unpredictable, you just never know when that hydrant is needed,” the spokesman says.
For BMW at East Boston fire scene, blocking hydrant proves costly [Boston Globe]
by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist
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