Tinley Park Duo Qualifies Nationally After Assembling Hydrant Fastest

TINLEY PARK, IL — Two Tinley Park women are moving to the finals in a national competition where teams compete to assemble fire hydrants the fastest.

Becky Sierra and Julie Peterson will compete Wednesday in San Antonio, TX at the American Water Works Association's annual conference. The "Hydrant Hysteria" contest is one part of the national conference where officials discuss water health and access.

While Sierra and Peterson, both of the Tinley Park Public Works Department, may make the contest look easy, competitors have to put together a hydrant from scratch before judges test the machine for accuracy. Each two person team has five minutes before the clock starts to inspect the hydrant parts and tools. Loose nozzles or caps incur a five second penalty.

The winning men's duo in 2019 was a team from Wauconda, IL, who put together a Kennedy Valve hydrant in one minute and 17 seconds. The first Hydrant Hysteria took place in 2017.

Sierra and Peterson are representing Illinois against teams from all 50 states. The duo won the statewide competition in March and preliminary round Tuesday with a time of two minutes and nine seconds. Watch their qualifying run here.

Watch the team, nicknamed the "Village Vixens," live-streamed on AWWA social media channels at 12:30 p.m.