Newspaper photographs Coney Island's Luna Park filling water ride from fire hydrant

Even if there was an agreement about water use, the city would still want it metered so they knew how much was being used. That being said, I can't see any water department giving anything away. Especially during this (almost nationwide) drought.

LostKause said:

kpjb said:

Your water bill is based on the meter at your house. Fire hydrants don't affect that, same as if a house down the street from you burns down... your personal bill doesn't increase.

Not saying what they did was right, it just wasn't costing you anything.

That may be true for someone else, somewhere else. I was very very close to the news story. I knew everyone involved, and was allowed knowledge of all the secret, unprinted details. Maybe it works differently here in the rural wooded hills of West Virginia than what you are familiar with. If you are correct, perhaps the water company that told us that everyone would pay for the water was lying for dramatic reasons?

Not exactly lying, but not entirely telling the truth, either.

To the extent that the water [company|department] incurs costs from the stolen water, those costs are passed along to all of their subscribers through increased rates. It's not metered to the street. But the cost of supplying water to that hydrant is built into the fee structure, just like the costs of plumbing and water treatment improvements.

--Dave Althoff, Jr.