A volunteer firefighter says crews went to fight a home fire on Dalrock Road, Friday, December 4, 2015, but they couldn’t get water from a hydrant because there was a big lock on it – and locks on the other neighborhood hydrants.
Mark Petz of Shannon Hills Fire Department, who helped North East Saline County Fire Department on this fire stated, “We had two trailers burn. The hydrant was locked and it did hinder putting the fire out. We used trucks and tankers to bring in the water we needed.”
Sardis Water Department Director Roger Moren stated, “Those are our hydrants. We had them locked because people were stealing water from them.” According to Moren, there is a regular event held nearby during the summer, and he says they haven’t caught the culprits yet, but he knows they are connecting to the hydrants and taking the water without permission.
“A couple of years ago, we bought locks for the hydrants and provided keys to the fire department,” stated Moren. He said that one of the firefighters, Bobby Franklin, told them they couldn’t find the keys. Representatives from Sardis Water did come to unlock the hydrants on Friday. “We are making more keys now to give to them,” stated Moren.
There were no injuries in the fire, as both homes appeared uninhabited. MySaline is waiting on the official report for an update to this story.
(Images courtesy Mark Petz. Click to enlarge.)
