Firefighters run out of water while battling blaze at Texas home
RENDON, Texas -- Firefighters who tried to save a Texas home that was struck by lightning ran out of the one thing they really needed: water, CBS Dallas/Fort Worth reports.
After lightning struck the peak of a two-story home in Rendon on Friday morning, flames raced through through the attic.
Firefighters realized the 3,000 gallons of water they brought with them wasn't enough. They turned to the closest hydrant -- somewhat surprised to see one in the area -- and got close to nothing. The water pressure was less than 10 psi, which is not nearly enough to stop a fire.
"With all these hose, we actually, what we tried to do was set up a fire truck there and boost the pressure," said Captain Steve Gutierrez, with the Rendon Fire Department. "But there wasn't even enough water. We would have actually pulled the hydrant out of the ground."
A tanker was eventually sent to another fire hydrant, and it shuttled water back to engines at the scene.
Texas health and safety codes set a standard for hydrants to provide a minimum of 250 gallons of water per minute for two hours. They're supposed to have at least 20 pounds of pressure per square inch.
But the hydrant near the burning home was installed with a four-inch water main, which is used for flushing lines rather than firefighting.
No injuries were reported.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
