During Fire Prevention Week (Oct. 7-13), I join local water utilities throughout Massachusetts in reminding residents about the critical but often overlooked role that local water supplies — and the systems that deliver them — play in fighting fires and protecting public safety.

A properly functioning, well-maintained water system provides reliable supplies at the high pressure and volume that can mean the difference between a small, manageable fire and a destructive, raging inferno.

A community’s ability to deliver sufficient, reliable water for fire suppression also heavily influences new-home construction, business-location decisions, and residential and commercial insurance rates.

But the water infrastructure essential for protecting communities from the ever-present threat of fires — pipes, distribution mains, wells and pumps invisible to the public eye — is aging and rapidly deteriorating.

This condition is especially critical in New England, where a number of community water systems are more than 100 years old.

Reinvestment in rehabilitating, improving and replacing local water infrastructure is imperative so that sufficient, life-saving water can flow uninterrupted from the source of supply, through a network of underground pipes, to the corner hydrant.

I also encourage residents to support the National Fire Protection Association’s “Have 2 Ways Out” campaign, which stresses the importance of fire-escape planning and practices in your homes (visit www.nfpa.org for more information).

During Fire Prevention Week, water-works professionals throughout New England applaud our region’s firefighters for their courageous, dedicated and selfless public service.

RAYMOND J. RAPOSA

executive director

New England Water Works Association