The Greenville Fire Department responded to two incidents in January where the closest fire hydrant was blocked by a vehicle. Fire Chief Bill Johnston told us this offense can drastically affect response time to fires. He said it should only take around 3 minutes to attach the hose to the hydrant and begin extinguishing the fire but when the hydrant is blocked, the time is often doubled.
Johnston told WGEL a fire can triple in size every minute so just a few minutes of delay can have a big impact on the damage done to a home or business. He said never to block a fire hydrant with a vehicle and not to pile snow around hydrants when shoveling your driveway or sidewalk.
