City to restore, raise south water tower

August 15, 2011 at 8:32 a.m. | Updated August 15, 2011 at 8:32 a.m.

Workmen from an Indiana specialty tank contractor attach a cable Friday to the top of the unused water tower on the south side of Fulton next to Keen Ford Inc. On Monday workmen plan to split the 500,000-gallon tower in half, insert a stand pipe, reassemble the single-pedestal tower and raise it to 48.5 feet. The extra height will be as high as two other towers in the city and allow the south tower to be returned to service with more reliable water pressure in the area around the tower.
Workmen from an Indiana specialty tank contractor attach a cable Friday to the top of the unused water tower on the south side of Fulton next to Keen Ford Inc. On Monday workmen plan to split the 500,000-gallon tower in half, insert a stand pipe, reassemble the single-pedestal tower and raise it to 48.5 feet. The extra height will be as high as two other towers in the city and allow the south tower to be returned to service with more reliable water pressure in the area around the tower.

An Indiana specialty tank contractor started work Friday to raise and renovate Fulton's half-million-gallon south water tower.

Fulton Mayor LeRoy Benton said renovating the tower next to Keen Ford Inc. and raising it to the proper height with two other city water towers will save the city about $400,000 compared to building a new water tower.

City Engineer Greg Hayes said the city hired the Columbia engineering firm of Shafer, Kline & Warren, Inc. (SKW) to study replacing the tower.

Built in 1962, the south water tower provided Fulton with water service for more than 40 years. In 2006 Fulton added two higher towers on the north and west sides of the city. This increased water pressure throughout the city. Hayes said about three years ago the lower south tower became unusable because it was not as high as the two other towers and could not provide sufficient water pressure to operate.

To help the tornado-stricken people of Dumas and surroundings, donations can be made to the Delta Area Disaster Relief Fund, care of the Delta Area Community Foundation, P.O. Box 894, Dumas, AR, 71639, or through the Arkansas Community Foundation, 700 S. Rock St., Little Rock, AR, 72202.