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Hernando Today

Bigger Water Lines Mean Better Fire Protection

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By TONY MARRERO

Hernando Today

Published: February 13, 2009

BROOKSVILLE - Fire Chief Tim Mossgrove remembers the fire like it happened yesterday.

Mossgrove, a lieutenant at the time, was the first officer on the scene of the blaze of the two-and-a-half-story historic home on Irene Street.

"It was pretty much fully involved to the second floor when we got there," Mossgrove said.

In other words, the flames had a sizeable head start on the century-old home built of knotted pine.

Firefighters hooked up to a two-port hydrant on Irene that forced about 500 gallons a minute through the hose. It wasn't enough.

"You need 750 to 1,000 gallons per minute to even have a chance to extinguish a fire that's gotten ahead of you," Mossgrove said.

Crews connected to a hydrant a block away on Bell Avenue, losing precious seconds. The home, which would have sustained significant damage in the best of scenarios, was destroyed.

Now, 14 years later, water lines leading to hydrants in a portion of the historic district north of Fort Dade Avenue are being upsized to increase the force of the flow.

Work began last week to replace nearly 3,000 linear feet of pipe. The loop includes Irene and Olive streets, Howell Avenue and a small portion on Bell Avenue - thoroughfares lined by some of the city's most majestic historic homes.

The existing two- and four-inch water lines in the area are being swapped for 12-inch lines. The youngest of the pipes are at least 40 years old, said Emory Pierce, public works director.

The city is paying $309,000 for the job using grant money from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. The contractor, Brooksville Civil Site Service, is expected to finish the job within 90 days, Pierce said.
Water service will be stopped for a short time toward the end of the project as meters come back online, Pierce said. Due to a related maintenance effort, customers in the area will see some interruptions at night in the coming weeks as valves are replaced on an existing line on Bell Avenue.

In both cases, residents will be notified in advance of service interruptions, Pierce said.

There are some traffic detours. Howell Avenue between Fort Dade and Olive is closed to through traffic between 7 p.m. and 6 a.m. It's been rough going on Howell Avenue this week, but crews are nearly finished with that portion of the project and should be repaving soon, Pierce said.

Access for through traffic also will be limited on Irene and Olive, Pierce said.

The message the city has for motorists and property owners, he said: "Excuse the inconvenience, but we're really trying to get adequate fire flow on these streets."

Long overdue

After the fire on Irene Street, Mossgrove researched the line sizes in the area, hand-drawing a map that listed all the sizes.

The line along Irene was four inches in diameter. With lime and other sediment deposits, it was probably more like two inches, Mossgrove said.

That won't carry enough water to fight a fire, especially one burning an old, wooden-framed home, Mossgrove added. When he gets a call to the area, a pumper truck automatically responds.

"That whole area has been in need of an upgrade for a long, long time," Mossgrove said.

Vice Mayor Lara Bradburn agreed. Bradburn, who was there on Irene Street that winter night in 1994 and watched the house burn, said money that had been originally designated for the project in the late 1990s was spent on other things.

"It could have easily cost lives, not just property," she said.

Reporter Tony Marrero can be reached at 352-544-5286 or lmarrero@hernandotoday.com.

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