It's hotter than the surface of the noxious, Earth-melting sun these days (okay, not today), and everybody's doing their best to stay cool without racking up gazillion dollar ConEd bills. Some crafty city dwellers bring the heat down using fire hydrants, unleashing their watery fury on the streets—and one group of kids was kind enough to share some spray with a double-decker bus full of tourists! Behold:
Note that while a fire hydrant shower might seem like a cost-effective way to cool off, it is probably best to save this life-saving device for actual life-saving. If you must open a hydrant, the FDNY hands out special city-approved spray caps [pdf] that help maintain water pressure for firefighters. An uncapped hydrant releases 1,000 gallons of water per minute, leaving very little water for all the little E. Coli bacteria to frolic in; anyone who opens a hydrant illegally is subject to a $1,000 fine or 30 day-prison sentence.
Now enjoy this video of small children playing with an open hydrant in Washington Heights—all that water looks nice when you aren't accidentally swimming in it while crossing the street.
For more fun with fire-safety devices, a man in Russia learned how to use a fire extinguisher as a personal jet-pack, making riding the subway much more fun!
[H/T Adrian Chen]
