30,000 Gallon Accident Ends the Summertime with a Bang

Mike Glenn September 8, 2015

On the last day of summer, children near Bay Island on Balboa Peninsula received one of the most memorable send-offs to date.

A roofing contractor was on Anade Avenue and Edgewater and was backing up his rig when he hit a fire hydrant. Bent, the hydrant was still attached. As people went to investigate, a neighbor who specializes in commercial construction yelled at the group to back up, because it could blow at any second. Said with convincing authority and urgency, people quickly backed away and moments later the hydrant shot off with the pressure of about 350kPa, landing a dozen feet away.

From there, the children did what we all dreamed of doing as kids: Played in a broken fire hydrant.

Water sprayed a towering 35 feet in the air for the better part of an hour, dumping an estimated 30,000 gallons of water into the streets and alleyways. A crowd of approximately 70 people waded through the water to play in the hydrant, many bringing their children with them.

The bursted hydrant was only one block away from the fire station, but there were issues on finding the location in which to shut off the output. Once the fire department had it under control, they paused for a moment to allow the children to safely approach a very rare opportunity and pose with the water, then spraying just 6 feet in the air.

There is no word on whether or not the roofing contractor will be held liable for losses and damages, but police have taken down their information.