Residents, technology aid hydrant clearing

The winter storm that dumped more than two feet of snow in Boston in early February gave fresh impetus to a city program that encourages residents to take responsibility for clearing snow from fire hydrants near their home.

The city is promoting its Adopt-a-Hydrant website (www.adoptahydrant.org), where residents may sign up for the program and choose their hydrant. After a snowfall, residents are urged to tweet or email pictures of their hydrant once they have shoveled it out.

While the Fire Department is ultimately responsible for ensuring that fire hydrants are clear, the work of volunteers speeds up the process while helping people feel a greater connectedness to their sidewalks, streets and neighborhood, according to Chris Osgood, co-chair of the city’s Office of New Urban Mechanics.

Nearly 200 hydrants have been “adopted” so far, according to Osgood. The adopters have the opportunity to give their hydrant a name. He said the city periodically sends follow-up emails to ensure that hydrant adopters still live at the same address.

The initiative was launched last year in a few neighborhoods and was expanded to the entire city this year.

The software was developed by Erik Michaels-Ober, who received fellowship support from Code for America, a nonprofit that promotes government efficiency through technology.

The technology can be used for other government purposes. Seattle, for example, uses it to help keep storm drains clear. In Honolulu, the app is used to report broken tsunami warning sirens.