Section 21 – Fire hydrants: provision etc.
34.Subsection (1) applies sections 19 to 22 of Schedule 4 to the Water (Scotland) Act 1980 to Scottish Water. Scottish Water are therefore required, at the request of a relevant authority (see paragraph 9 of schedule 3 to this Act) to fix fire hydrants on their mains, keep them in good order and renew them. As soon as such a hydrant is complete, Scottish Water must - if required by the relevant authority – deposit a key in appropriate places. The costs incurred shall be defrayed by the relevant authority. Scottish Water must also, at the request and expense of the owner or occupier of any factory or place of business near a road, where certain requirements are fulfilled, fix a hydrant, keep it in good order and from time to time renew it.
35.Subsection (2) requires Scottish Water to mark the location of every fire hydrant with a notice or distinguishing mark and under subsection (4) the costs of doing this can be charged to the relevant authority in whose area the hydrant is situated.
36.Subsection (5) grants the Scottish Ministers power to make regulations providing for uniformity in fire hydrants and the distinguishing marks and notices indicating their location. This re-enacts section 14(6) of the 1947 Act.
37.Subsection (6) provides that, in circumstances where a hydrant is damaged as a result of authorised use which was not for the purposes of fire fighting or other relevant authority purposes, the liability for the cost of repair or replacement will not fall on the relevant authority. This re-enacts section 14(3)(b) of the 1947 Act.