Lack of available fire hydrants hindered the firefighting abilities of firefighters on the scene of a structure fire Tuesday, Oct. 4, according to Pea Ridge Fire Chief Jared Powell.
Powell said firefighters shuttled water from downtown Pea Ridge to the scene on Gann Ridge Road.
Firefighters from Pea Ridge, Northeast Benton County, Avoca and Little Flock assisted in fighting the fire that destroyed a manufactured home. The residents were not home at the time of the fire and there were no injuries reported. Powell said the cause of the fire has not been determined.
"Due to the lack of close hydrant water, crews established tanker shuttles to bring water to the scene. The location of active hydrants combined with heavy traffic in the area hindered fire fighting operations," according to a social media post by the Pea Ridge Fire Department. "A knock down of the fire was made one hour and 19 minutes from the time first units arrived on scene. Once the fire was under control, crews spent the next hour and 20 minutes extinguishing hot spots until it was determined no fire hazards remained."
NEBCO Fire Chief Rob Taylor said his department has a policy that they do not attempt to use hydrants along Gann Ridge Road west of Mahurin Road because the lines aren't big enough. He said when the hydrants have been opened in the past, it hindered water flow to customers. He said the hydrant at Gann Ridge and Mahurin Road is "pretty efficient."
"We just have to shuttle water, like we do in a lot of other areas," Taylor said.
Powell said he spoke to Tim Evans, manager of the Gateway Public Water Authority, who told him the hydrants were flush hydrants and not fire hydrants.
Powell said he told Evans the hydrants should be painted black to avoid confusion as to what is available for fire departments.
Gateway Mayor Andrew Tillman said the city of Gateway does not govern the Gateway Public Water Authority.
"They're two separate entities," Tillman said, explaining that he had served on the Water Board previously and that none of the city's tax money is used for or by the Water Authority.
"All they have to do is provide drinking water," Tillman said. He said the lines supplying water are not large enough to provide fire-fighting water pressure and that if the water pressure is decreased too much, the authority has to issue a boil order according to rules governing rural water authorities.
According to the Gateway Public Water Authority 2021 annual drinking water quality report, the authority purchases treated surface water from Benton-Washington Regional Water Authority which gets its water from Beaver Lake.
"We want our valued customers to be informed about their water utility. If you want to learn more, please attend any of our regularly scheduled meetings. They are held on the second Monday of each month at 7 p.m. in Gateway Town Hall," according to the water quality report, which states the manager is Pam Shaw.
Gateway PWA is listed as members of the Arkansas Rural Water Association. The director lists Tim Evans as manager, operator and David Patterson as president of the Gateway Water Authority.
Attempts to contact Evans were unsuccessful.