CLIFTON FORGE, Va. – A fire broke out Tuesday morning in Clifton Forge, but it is not the flames leaving neighbors worried; it’s the fire hydrants.
The fire has raised concerns about the effectiveness of low-pressure fire hydrants in the neighborhood.
According to the Town Manager, Chuck Unroe, the fire department arrived on scene around 11:30 a.m. Firefighters worked to contain the blaze and cleared the scene around 1:30 p.m. However, a rekindle prompted a second dispatch in the evening and the scene was finally cleared around 9 p.m.
Neighbor Chuck Skelding witnessed firefighters struggling to get water from the hydrant in front of his home. “When there’s a large fire and you look at the fire hydrant right next to your house, it’s very alarming and concerning. If it was Sunday when we had 40 mph wind, it could’ve been a completely different story. We could’ve lost our whole block of houses,” he said. Skelding shared that the hydrant next to his home was unable to pump water.
Town Manager Chuck Unroe explained that all hydrants were operable at the time, but the neighborhood’s hydrants are classified as low flow... meaning they provide 500 gallons per minute or less. “When two fire engines connect to two different low-flow hydrants in the same area, one engine robs the water from the other hydrant,” Unroe said.
To ensure adequate water supply during fires, Clifton Forge participates in a mutual aid agreement with Alleghany County and other local emergency agencies. When a structure fire is dispatched in the eastern part of the county, all four area fire departments respond simultaneously to provide equipment, water, and manpower.
Unroe emphasized that the Clifton Forge Fire Department is aware of the need to provide more than adequate fire protection and suppression. “They continually evaluate, plan and train to handle these types of situations,” he said. “As our Fire Superintendent stated this morning, they learn from every fire that they respond to and it is an ever-evolving process. Every fire is different.”
Skelding met with town officials after the fire and said he was pleased with their responsiveness, but believes more work is needed to improve fire safety in the neighborhood. “I feel like for some of the risks we have in our neighborhood specifically, that we deserve a little bit better fire hydrant protection,” he said.
Town officials have engaged an engineering firm to begin evaluating possible upgrades to the water supply for fire suppression in areas with low-flow hydrants. Skelding plans to attend town council meetings to ensure the town follows through.