CITY OF MILWAUKEE POLICE DEPARTMENT - DOC

							      CITY OF MILWAUKEE POLICE DEPARTMENT
                  NEWS ADVISORY
                                Nannette Hegerty, Chief of Police

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                          CONTACT: ANNE E. SCHWARTZ
DATE: JUNE 26, 2007                                             PUBLIC RELATIONS MANAGER
NEWS RELEASE # 07-34                                                           414-935-7209

   JUST LIKE THE HEAT, OPEN HYDRANTS CAN TAKE A TOLL

WHAT: News conference warning community about the dangers of
opening fire hydrants

WHEN: 10 a.m. June 27, 2007

WHERE: Starms School, 2035 North 25th Street, one of the city’s Cool
Spots

WHO: Milwaukee Fire Chief Douglas Holton; Milwaukee Police Third
District Captain James Harpole; Laura Daniels, Milwaukee Water
Works

DETAILS: Last year, the City of Milwaukee experienced more than
700 illegal hydrant openings.

Those who illegally open fire hydrants are thinking only of themselves –
the prospect of cooling off outweighs the dangers and penalties of this
unlawful act.

When the water from the hydrant passes across the street, oncoming
traffic may not see any pedestrians playing under the water. A vehicle
can lose control and severely injure a child or adult.

If firefighters need that particular hydrant to extinguish a fire, the
water pressure in that neighborhood may be too low to perform the task
and make a bad situation worse.
                                                  # # #

    Police Administration Building, 749 West State Street, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53201-0531 (414) 933-4444