By the Numbers: D.C.'s Broken Fire Hydrants

| Print Post This | Like (0) | Comments (0)

Photo of a fire hydrant at Wisconsin Avenue and R Street NW, in front of the burned-out Georgetown Public Library, by Susan Biddle/The Washington Post

IN THE WAKE of the devastating fire that nearly destroyed Georgetown's public library, the quasi-independent D.C. Water and Sewer Authority has come under fire over the exact number of broken fire hydrants in the District. (There were two near the library, forcing firefighters to use hydrants two blocks away to battle the blaze, The Post reports.)

"It's outrageous," At-Large D.C. Council member Phil Mendelson told The Post's Allison Klein: "There should not be 10 percent of fire hydrants out of service, nor should there be any confusion about what the correct number is."

Fire union officials content the problem is much bigger than WASA's current estimates. Let's survey D.C.'s broken fire hydrants by the numbers ...

» 9,000: The number of hydrants citywide that WASA is responsible for.
» 23 of 256: The number of broken hydrants the fire department found in tests that started May 7 and ended this Tuesday.
» 11: The percentage of broken hydrants discovered by the fire department in a test of 1,072 hydrants conducted late last year.
» 38: The number of hydrants, according to WASA, that were not functioning as of Monday.
» 125: The number of hydrants not on WASA's automated mapping system, as discovered by firefighters last year.

» "Nearly 10 Percent of Hydrants Don't Work, Union Says" [WaPo]
» EARLIER: "Across D.C., Mourning One Terrible Monday" [Free Ride/Express]

Photo by Susan Biddle/The Washington Post