The Tryon Fire Department announced that it has begun the task of repainting all fire hydrants in its district, totaling more than 200 hydrants. &bsp;

It has been several years since all hydrants were repainted, and the department hopes to have the project completed by August. &bsp;

As you will notice the hydrants are being painted yellow with a white top, as well as having rust spots removed. &bsp;

Some questions have been raised regarding the painting of the fire hydrants in the Business District which were painted to resemble horse jockeys.&bsp; Those hydrants were painted by private groups who no longer wish to maintain the hydrants. &bsp;

Town Council is now working on a policy which will give further clarification as to the possible return of these familiar characters.

You will also note that fire department personnel will be trimming weeds around these hydrants to maintain a clearance area that allows us to more easily access the hydrants to hook up various sizes of fire hose.

In the next few weeks we will also begin the process of flowing hydrants ‐ which allows us to tell how many gallons per minute a particular hydrant is capable of producing. &bsp;

The tops of the hydrants will then be color coded to meet NFPA standards regarding those flow amounts.&bsp; Notification regarding areas where the hydrants will be flowed will be publicized in the Tryon Daily Bulletin as well as the Town of Tryon website (www.tryon-nc.com) and the Tryon Fire Department website (www.tryonfire.org).

The public is encouraged to submit comments regarding the painting and maintenance of the fire hydrants as Council works to establish new policy.&bsp; Comments can be submitted via e-mail to the Tryon Fire Department at tfd@tryon-nc.com or by telephone at 828-859-9566.