by Charlie London
New Orleans – September 23, 2016
This morning at 11 a.m., all of the students and personnel at Cabrini High School were evacuated to meeting points around the school.
At 11:08 a.m. Engine 35 of the New Orleans Fire Department arrived. A second engine arrived minutes later. The school was inspected and the Fire Department found that an air freshener set off the school’s alarm.
The young ladies of Cabrini then returned to their classes.
Wallace C. Drennan, Inc., working for the Sewerage and Water Board, will be replacing hydrants that service the area. Residents and businesses on Moss Street between St. Philip Street to Dumaine Street will experience low water pressure on Tuesday, July 5, 2016 from 9 a.m. until noon while two new fire hydrants are installed.
The Sewerage and Water Board appreciates your patience as they work to improve the City’s infrastructure.
Please note that all scheduled work may change due to unforeseen circumstances such as weather delays.
In areas subject to freezing temperatures, only a portion of the hydrant is above ground. The valve is located below the frost line and connected by a riser to the above-ground portion. A valve rod extends from the valve up through a seal at the top of the hydrant, where it can be operated with the proper wrench. This design is known as a “dry barrel” hydrant, in that the barrel, or vertical body of the hydrant, is normally dry. A drain valve underground opens when the water valve is completely closed; this allows all water to drain from the hydrant body to prevent the hydrant from freezing.
In warm areas, hydrants are used with one or more valves in the above-ground portion. Unlike with cold-weather hydrants, it is possible to turn the water supply on and off to each port. This style is known as a “wet barrel” hydrant.
Both wet- and dry-barrel hydrants typically have multiple outlets. Wet barrel hydrant outlets are typically individually controlled, while a single stem operates all the outlets of a dry barrel hydrant simultaneously. Thus, wet barrel hydrants allow single outlets to be opened, requiring somewhat more effort, but simultaneously allowing more flexibility.
A typical U.S. dry-barrel hydrant has two smaller outlets and one larger outlet. The smaller outlet is often a Storz connection if the local fire department has standardized on hose using Storz fittings for large diameter supply line. The larger outlet is known as a “steamer” connection, because they were once used to supply steam powered water pumps, and a hydrant with such an outlet may be called a “steamer hydrant”, although this usage is becoming archaic. Likewise, an older hydrant without a steamer connection may be called a “village hydrant.”
description courtesy Wikipedia
***
photos below by Michelle Minyard notes by Charlie London
At approximately 8 p.m. this evening, fire broke out in the garage on North Rendon of Phil and Karen Martin. The fire quickly engulfed the garage while numerous New Orleans Fire Department vehicles raced to the scene.
The fire was contained. No one was injured.
Click on the photos for a larger view.
photos and comments by Charlie London
The 2013 attempt was different. It appears that more thought and planning went into the effort. The fire burned for quite some time and there were timed fireworks that shot out at different intervals as the fire floated across the bayou.
The platform was tethered so it could be removed from the bayou. No one was injured but the safety of an open fire in an urban environment is certainly questionable.
Fireworks and the fire on the bayou are illegal in Orleans Parish.
Photo from the Historic New Orleans Collection.
Photo from the New Orleans Public Library’s website – nutrias.org
***
A vacant house long on the radar of the Mid-City Neighborhood Association burned Thursday afternoon. Fire damaged nearly 85 percent of the boarded double, acting Deputy Chief David Castle said.
No one was injured by the flames, but one of the 38 firefighters who responded to the fire reported he was injured in a way that did not involve a burn, according to preliminary reports. Castle declined to elaborate on the firefighter’s injury.
The blaze at 3323-3321 Cleveland Ave. was called in about 3:40 p.m. Firefighters arrived at the scene three minutes later and it was under control at 4:22 p.m., Castle said.
The fire was starting to spread to an adjacent home at 3319-3317 Cleveland. Firefighters, though, were able to contain it — but not before it melted the home’s siding. There was no apparent damage to the interior of that home, Castle said.
Tyajai Williams, who lives across the street, said she ran to warn the tenants in 3319-3317 Cleveland while her father called the police.
She said she saw two men wearing hard hats on a side of the building but did not see their tools. After they left, she said, she thought she saw smoke, but wasn’t sure. When she saw flames, she acted.
Lili LeGardeur — who has served on the governing board of the neighborhood association and who lives around the corner from the burned house — said she called the owner of the house, Wilma Spiers, in 2008 to complain about the structure being wide open, moldy and blighted.
The house had not been remediated since Hurricane Katrina, she said.
The neighborhood association in 2010 reported the problems to the city’s Code Enforcement division, she said.
Gladys Galindo Silvas, manager of the home with the melted siding and two other homes in the 3300 block of Cleveland Avenue, said she complained about the then “wide-open” house to City Hall “about a year ago” and reported that it was leaning toward the double she manages. She said she was given a number to follow up on her complaint but no one answered that number.
Ultimately, boards were screwed over the building’s openings.
In January 2012, Miles Trapolin, LeGardeur’s husband, sent an email to Code Enforcement stating the property’s windows and doors are boarded. “However, it has only a partial roof,” which makes the structure blighted.
Pura S. Bascos, director of Code Enforcement, replied via email on January 20 that “an inspection was performed on 1/18 and we await a hearing date.”
Then came the fire.
Its cause is under investigation, Castle said.
As firefighters left the scene Thursday, LeGardeur spoke of being “disappointed, frustrated.”
People work hard to care for their homes in Mid-City, she said.
“People who don’t care, pose a real danger to us,” she continued. “Code enforcement is not a luxury; it’s a necessity.”
http://www.nola.com/traffic/index.ssf/2012/05/house_with_history_of_complain.html
On Friday, December 16th, the American Red Cross SELA Chapter will be distributing cookies to the New Orleans firehouses to show our appreciation for all they do for our community. There are three simple ways YOU can help:
1.) Bake some cookies! There are around 600 firefighters in New Orleans, so we need LOTS of cookies! Please bake a dozen or more of your favorite cookies and bring them into chapter HQ on Thursday, December 15th. Our goal is 60 dozen (WOW), but I know we can do it!
2.) Say thanks and send some holiday cheer! We will be attaching thank you/holiday cards to the cookies, so if you would like to write a letter of appreciation or send a card, we will need those by Thursday, December 15th.
3.) Deliver the cookies! We need volunteers to help deliver the cookies because there are 31 firehouses in New Orleans! Delivery will be throughout the day on Friday, December 16th.
For any questions or to sign up to help with delivery, please contact Aimee Mankins at (504)620-3131 or via email at [email protected].
As always, thank you for all that you do for the American Red Cross and for New Orleans! Happy Holidays!
