Andrews The Town of Andrews and Valleytown Fire & Rescue wasted no time tackling an issue with inoperative fire hydrants, starting work Monday to replace the defective units.
About 40 of the 104 fire hydrants that serve Andrews are out of service and require tens of thousands of dollars in replacements.
Valleytown Fire Department Chief Justin Hyde briefed the Andrews Board of Aldermen about the situation at the board’s March 7 meeting. He said some fire hydrants in the 3-square-mile town are in “horrible shape,” and the board agreed to approve replacement funding.
Ledford & Parker Inc. of Hayesville is performing the work, with town staff shutting off water to the hydrants before the digging starts.
The first two replacement hydrants were installed Monday – one near the intersection of Upper Valley River Lane and Locust Street, and one near Ingles on Main Street.
The first 20 will be replaced at a price of about $26,000, with an order for 20 more to complete the job. The number of defective hydrants is slightly less than what was earlier reported following more detailed inspections.
Valleytown Fire & Rescue has been dealing with the aftermath of the January 2022 dissolution of the Andrews Volunteer Fire Department following a record of poor responses to fires by the 115-year-old department as well as poor maintenance of assets – including fire hydrants.
When the Board of Aldermen dissolved the town’s volunteer fire department, it contracted with Valleytown Fire & Rescue for $50,000 per year. Since that time, Valleytown firefighters have inventoried Andrews’ fire hydrants, spraying black paint on the tops of inoperative units.
Black-painted fire hydrants are scattered throughout the town following the inventory..