If Village Council President William Siver has his way, Park Island residents won’t have to wait much longer to find out if the water pressure on the island is sufficient to fight fires.
Citing confusion about the adequacy of water pressure on the island last Tuesday, Siver stressed that assuring the safety of Park Island residents should take precedent over other matters on the table related to the island.
‘God help somebody if there is a fire out there and we have a problem,? Siver told a group of Park Island residents during the meeting. ‘We need to get this resolved immediately. We’re here to protect you guys.?
Village Manager JoAnn Van Tassel informed the council that fire hydrants on the island were recently tested by Fire Chief Jeff Key. Key reported that the hydrant pressure flowed at about 440 gpm (gallons per minute), about 60 gpm less than the fire department prefers when fighting a fire.
At the suggestion of the fire chief, the DPW flushed the water lines on the island and double-checked to see if all the valves were open.
The process reportedly flushed some of debris from the water line and the flow appeared to be good, said Van Tassel.
Based on the DPW report and a follow-up conversation, it was Van Tassel’s impression that there were no serious problems with the pressure.
‘There was nothing in our verbal conversation that suggested a problem,? she said.
However, Park Island resident Howard Daenzer claims otherwise. Daenzer said Key told him after the test, that ‘the water flow was not sufficient to fight fires on the island.?
To eliminate the uncertainty, Siver requested a second test of the fire hydrants on the island. He also wants a written opinion from the fire chief.
‘I think we want the chief to verify that the pressure is adequate,? he said.
Council member John Ranville speculated that part of the problem may be that the existing fire mains on the island can’t produce enough pressure for modern fire pumpers.
‘Those mains were adequate in 1981, but with the bigger (fire) pumpers it’s hard to get the pressure,? he said.
He suggested that another obvious water source for fighting fires is being overlooked or disregarded.
‘The fire department has the greatest resource in the world — the lake,? Ranville said. ? They don’t need to rely on the hydrants. But for some reason, our fire department doesn’t like using water from the lake.?
Dan Kowalski, a Park Island resident since 1984, said there have been concerns about the island’s water pressure since the village changed over to (Detroit) city water in the early 1990s from the former water tower.
The Village formerly used community wells for its water supply.
‘When we converted to city water, there was an increase in pressure that caused some problems,? Kowalski recalled. ‘Someone needs to be accountable to determine exactly what the pressure needs to be. Can we get a little help here??
Siver said he plans to pick up the ball and get some answers, if they’re not forthcoming.
‘I’ll talk to the fire chief myself and find out,? he said. ‘I find this issue to be more important than some others that we’re spending money on right now.?
Bridge guard rails discussed
In another matter related to Park Island, Manager Van Tassel informed council of a report from village engineer Hubbell, Roth & Clark, indicating that the guard rail on the Park Island Bridge does not quite meet the desirable standard height. ‘It’s about six inches short,? she said.
Van Tassel said Dick Beaubien, HRC traffic engineer, measured the guard rail and reported that the height of the rail should not be less than 3.5 feet from the pavement to the top of the highest guard rail. The height recommendation is based on the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials standard.
Island resident Bill Raymor, who supports resurfacing Park Island and converting it to a public road, thinks the guard rail upgrade should be made.
‘The intent of looking at the bridge was to determine if the road can be made public,? said Raymor. ‘If the only issue is to bring the guard rail up six inches, let’s go forward with the repair to bring it up to standard.?
Van Tassel said the village will need to further investigate the cost of the repair before proceeding.