The Columbus Division of Fire will soon begin the arduous task of flushing thousands of hydrants.

Between April 21 and July 21, the Columbus Division of Fire will tackle the mammoth task of flushing each and every fire hydrant.

"There are thousands of them," said Battalion Chief Steve Martin.

Each hydrant is flushed to be sure it's in proper working order. If firefighters discover an issue, they alert the proper authorities to schedule repairs.

"We are kind of the eyes and ears and hands of the hydrant," Martin said.

Firefighters said checking each and every hydrant is crucial to public safety. They cautioned homeowners could notice discolored water when they turn on a faucet in their home within a few hours of the hydrant flushing in their neighborhood.

"You might see something in your drinking water, you might have some ice cubes that have a funny taste and one of the worst things we worry about is if you're doing that load of whites, they're going to come out a different color than you put them in," Martin said.

Firefighters said when they flush the hydrants, the process stirs up sediment and sometimes rust in the water mains. The city of Columbus said if your water is discolored, avoid running the faucet, using hot water or doing laundry for at least 4 to 6 hours. By then, the water should clear up on its own.



For more details on when firefighters will flush hydrants in the city of Columbus, click here.

To learn when firefighters will flush hydrants in the Columbus metropolitan area, including the suburbs, and for more information on what to do if a hydrant flushing leaves your water discolored, click here.