He’s asked for help of fire departments
There have been several short periods in recent months when Highland Falls residents have taken to social media to show pictures of the brown water coming from the faucets in their village homes.
It’s not a sight anyone involved in running the village’s water plant wants to see.
“We’ve been working on the problem,” Mayor Joe D’Onofrio said this week. “About two weeks ago we flushed hydrants, which we know causes discolored water for a short period. But the week prior to that we were getting reports of dirty water too.”
He said they tried to figure out what was going on and think they have linked it to training by the local fire departments.
“When either the Highland Falls or Fort Montgomery Fire Department has training on hydrants, they open them up and pump water out of them,” the mayor said. “That fast stream of water coming out of the hydrant pulls directly from our pipes, stirring up the sediment that builds up inside the pipes. When we flush the hydrants three times a year it’s to get rid of the sediment.”
D’Onofrio said he has spoken with HFFD Chief Erik Smith about possibly conducting hydrant training in the future from a hydrant near the village’s sewer plant, a hydrant that contains potable water from the plant that can be drained into the Hudson River. Typically, they do their training at Roe Park, which can affect all areas of the village.
He said he’s also asked a FMFD member to take back a request to an upcoming department meeting asking them to use one of three hydrants off West Point water lines — untreated water — near O’Neill High School. That wouldn’t create a ‘pull’ on the treated water that goes into homes either, he said.
“When the fire departments train — and I’m 100 percent for them doing all the training they need to — it definitely affects all of our water,” D’Onofrio said. “I’m hopeful this solution will alleviate many of the dirty — not contaminated, but dirty — water issues we hear about.”
