Every year, to start the year, I find my way outside to do something. Several years running I took my boys to the Wilmington riverfront, when they had a winter outdoor skating rink. The skating rink has not been there the last few years due to weather (it has not been cold enough for outdoor ice).
Still, wanting to start the year off on an outdoor foot has led me towards a new outdoor goal: a simple hike. It used to be that my youngest would go with me. Sadly, neither he nor his older brothers are interested in enjoying the great outdoors with me, so I've found peace in going on my own.
The weather this First Day, however, is largely wet and, though I don't mind the water, I was just not interested this day in trudging through water and mud. I felt that the best course of action for today was to simply walk through the city to see if there is anything in it that I actually have not yet photographed. There isn't, it seems, so I decided to revisit an old standby subject and hunted down some fire hydrants on campus.
Look at these fellows, standing stoically on guard, always ready to answer the call when needed.
In the US, the colour of the cap of the hydrant indicates the water flow capacity of that particular hydrant:
- Red indicates a water-flow capacity of fewer than 500 gallons per minute (GPM).
- Orange indicates a water-flow capacity of 500 to 999 GPM.
- Green indicates a water-flow capacity of 1,000 to 1,499 GPM.
- Blue indicates a water-flow capacity of 1,500 or greater GPM.
(https://www1.wsrb.com/blog/is-there-meaning-behind-the-color-of-a-fire-hydrant)
Therefore, according to standards, the two red and green hydrants in the pictures above supply the same water as this yellow and green one here.
It's possible that the colour of the body of the hydrant means something as well, but not according to standards. The standards are not requirements; they are suggestions. Regardless, I rarely see any fire hydrant in the city with a blue cap, like this one growing out of the flower bed.
Of course, once I started looking for the blue capped creatures, they made themselves known.
(come to think of it, I believe I read somewhere that a red fire hydrant, in the City of Newark, is maintained by the University of Delaware, whereas the yellow ones are public)
(I am just as confident that a fire fighter wouldn't care which hydrant was used)
(c) All images and photographs, unless otherwise specified, are created and owned by me.
(c) Victor Wiebe
About Me
Sometimes photographer. Wannabe author. Game designer. Nerd.
General all around problem-solver and creative type.
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