Water to benefit fire department, residents
Staff writer
Ramona’s fire department soon will have a new water source, but it will benefit more than just the department, resident and firefighter Mark Lockhart said.
“If we have a fire and empty our trucks then we have to depend on mutual aid to bring us more water,” he said. “Having eight acres right there in town, I would rather not have the fire keep going just because they didn’t have enough water.”
The department is planning to bury an old train car behind the building, which will be able to house at least 30,000 gallons that will be supplied by a well.
Other people or businesses will be able to pay quarters to access the bulk water.
“One thing we really have in mind is spring burning for farmers and landowners,” fire chief Nathan Brunner said. “This is going to be a big thing for them. Every time they go out and burn they take water with them and it’s hard to fill when they take 1,000 gallons of water.”
The addition also will separate the fire department’s water supply from Ramona and Colfax Township, so residents no longer will have issues when the department uses a large amount of water.
“Right now, any time we use vast amounts of water we disturb the water supply,” Brunner said. “We’ll actually make it brown and very unusable.”
The project has to be completed within a year and comes with a price tag of $25,000, but a majority of that expense is taken care of.
The department last week received an $11,000 grant from Union Pacific to help with the project.
Another $5,000 will be used from an April donation of $15,000 by Diamond Vista operator Enel Green Power.
Other businesses with local ties also are pitching in, Brunner said.
Last modified Aug. 19, 2020