Threat of Devastating House Fires In Lake Area Prompts Voters To Approve Fire Control Infrastructure For Lakes Neighborhoods [with video]
Val Prest, longtime Lost Lake resident and retired civil engineer explained the three articles before the Town Meeting voters proposing to address fire suppression in the densely populated Lost Lake area. Prest was a member of a committee appointed by Town Manager Mark Haddad to look at the issues of water availability following two serious house fires at the Lost Lake last year.
All three articles passed so the town can now begin the design phase and put out for bid a water main extension on Lost Lake Drive, a water main extension on Route 119 to Groton Ridge Heights, and installation of two fire cisterns. Total cost for the three design articles is $103,400.
Prest told voters that Lost Lake was originally a meadow and because of this is very shallow with the bottom of the lake mostly consisting of loam. This is important because pumping water from the lake to use for firefighting is almost impossible due to the shallowness and the inability of the fire pumps to get to the middle of the lake where there is some depth.
He and fellow committee member Rena Swezey tested the depth at eight separate sections of the lake for potential dry hydrant sites. There were only two areas identified as possibilities as any depth was too far from shore for fire equipment to draw water.
He summed up the challenge facing the lake residents and the fire department; "Water, water everywhere and not a drop to fight a fire."
Prest said that the proposed cisterns would hold 50K gallons of water and would provide water to fight a fire for 50 to 60 minutes and there are two locations; off Weymisset and Radio Road on land owned by the Conservation Trust and at a section of the Grotonwood Baptist Camp. For a dry hydrant, an area near a bridge was a possibility.
Resident James Downes asked who operated the hydrants. Fire Chief Joe Bosselait replied that this was done by the fire trucks and mutual aid. Referring to the recent fire at the lake, Downes asked the Chief, "Why couldn't you turn on the hydrant. You had to wait for mutual aid...Whoever did it didn't know how to operate it." Chief Bosselait said the procedure was reviewed and that different procedures were used at different fires.
Selectman Jack Petropoulos told voters that he thought that providing water for this effort was "not comprehensively thought out. It will be well over $1M in cost. It is not ready to move forward."
Petropoulos said, "I don't believe that this is in the Master Plan," adding that he saw no coordination with Lost Lake Sewer Committee, and reiterated that it is not coordinated at this point. He added that he was not opposed to fire hydrants at Lost Lake, "but we didn't look at the rest of the town. It could be better planned."
Water Department Manager Tom Orcutt replied, "Lost Lake is the most dense and that the terrain is an issue." He said he was aware of other areas of town that needed fire protection as well.
Lake resident Art Prest stressed to voters, "We need this. The conservation land around us is all dry" and cited past fires at the Lake over the years where a number of homes have been lost. He told Petropoulos, "I have your phone number on speed dial for a bucket brigade."
Other members of the study committee included Police Chief Donald Palma, and lake resident Carol Quinn in addition to Prest, Swezey, Orcutt and Chief Bosselait.
