By COLE REIF
Great Bend Post
The temperatures outside are significantly warming up compared to last week. This Tuesday has a high set over 60 degrees.
Looking back at the freezing conditions and the hardships many went through with frozen or burst water pipes, furnace issues and electricity blackouts, the Great Bend Fire Department shared their challenges.
Along with firefighters working in below zero weather, Fire
Chief Luke McCormick says freezing temperatures and a need for water simply do
not go together.
"All of our hoses start to freeze," said McCormick. "We have to keep water moving which creates an ice skating battle. Thankfully, our street department put down some salt and sand around the scene."
McCormick is referring to the fire scene at a home at 4th Street and
Buckeye Street that the fire department responded to in the early morning hours
of Feb. 14. At the time of the fire, the temperature was -4
degrees with a wind chill of -14. For the bigger fires, such as this one, the
fire department has to be concerned about freezing the pipes to the hydrant.
"We put quite a bit of water on that fire," said McCormick. "As long as we keep the water flowing, we're good. As soon as we shut the water off though, that is when we start running into the hydrant freezing up."
With the water freezing inside the hoses as soon as they shut off the water, the
fire department was not able to immediately repack the hoses on the truck. The
Great Bend street department brought flatbed trailers to keep the hoses
stretched out as they were hauled back to the fire station.