The City of Fountain Fire and Water departments collaborated to conduct comprehensive fire hydrant assessments this fall. The testing is essential to maintain the City’s Public Protection Classification issued by the Insurance Services Office (ISO). The ISO provides a fire protection rating schedule that helps insurers assess their risk for the purpose of issuing property and casualty insurance, ultimately affecting insurance premiums for most homeowners and businesses. 

The rating considers three fundamental elements of fire protection (dispatch, fire department and water supply) and ranges on a scale of 1-10; a rating of “10” indicates no fire protection, and a rating of “1” indicates the best fire rating. The City of Fountain currently holds a community fire protection rating of “3” and plans to improve the classification to level “2” within the next few years. "We depend on the fire hydrants when a fire occurs. A quality assurance program for hydrant testing will result in a safer community for our residents," said Fire Chief James Maxon.

These comprehensive assessments confirm each hydrant is in proper working order and color-coded to indicate flow rate. The bonnet of each hydrant is painted in accordance with its respective gallon-per-minute (GPM) flow rate: blue (1,500GPM or greater); green (1,000 – 1,499GPM); orange (500-999GPM); and red (less than 500GPM). These color codes are set by the National Fire Protection Agency, which recommends that water systems and fire departments across the nation use a standard color-coding system.  While water systems maintain proper pressure for fire protection, these colors help to clearly communicate available water pressure to firefighters during emergencies.

For questions related to the ISO fire protection rating and fire protection throughout the City of Fountain, contact Fire Chief James Maxon at [email protected].