While responding to a structure fire this week, Strasburg Fire Chief Troy Agney was angry — as "hot as the fire," he said.
Once the 1,500 gallons of water in his tanker was used, it took 25 minutes and 37 seconds for the rig to refill again at a hydrant south of town.
Problems with water for the fire department began about a month ago, when the water tower in Strasburg was drained. Agney said that means not nearly enough water flows from village hydrants. And so firetrucks now travel to Stewardson or Windsor to be restocked with water. Those lengthy trips can leave Agney's crew without water for spans that are agonizingly long to a firefighter.
"Now we're pulling back and watching it burn," Agney said. "We don't have a snowball's chance in hell."