As October begins, the specialists of the municipal enterprise «Service Center» have started the winterization process for the city’s fountains to ensure their operation in spring.
Winterizing a fountain is a complex procedure. To ensure the fountains survive the winter, the enterprise’s specialists must blow out the water supply systems, dismantle the nozzles, as well as the electrical and pump equipment. After dismantling, the fountain equipment is inspected, and repairs are made if necessary.
This year, the first fountain to be shut down was located at the Railway Station Square. Next, the fountains «Waterfall» on Kosivska Street and «Mermaid» in Victory Park are scheduled for winterization.
Other fountains in the city parks will stop operating by mid-October, while those adorning the central part of Odessa will be winterized last. Thus, by early November, all city fountains are expected to be winterized.
Additionally, in recent years, the «Service Center» has been practicing complete sealing of certain fountains. This method is applied to fountains located in the City Garden, Shevchenko Park («Small Vase»), and the Cosmonauts Square. Since the war began, four fountains located in the UNESCO zone were completely winterized and did not operate at all this year: the Memorial Fountain for the Victims of the German-Romanian Fascists, the «Petya and Gavrik» fountain, the «Children and Tadpole» fountain, and the «Source» well-fountain.
The reverse process - the spring unsealing of the fountains - will commence in early spring. The first fountains are usually turned on in the city center by April 1, with the remainder following in April.
Reference
The «Service Center» manages 27 city fountains. In 2024, 17 fountains were unsealed, serviced by the «Service Center». All of them are located outdoors, thus the main factor determining their operational period is the weather conditions and temperature.
Fifteen employees of the «Service Center» ensure the proper functioning of these fountains.
Throughout the spring-summer-autumn period, specialists from the «Service Center» conduct regular maintenance of the fountains: cleaning the bowls and collecting debris that enters the water, cleaning external filters and nozzles, rinsing sand filters, and maintaining the water at the required level.
In addition to scheduled maintenance, Odessa’s fountains occasionally suffer from acts of vandalism. In such cases, repairs are conducted on an emergency basis.
As usual, the fountain on Krymsky Boulevard experienced the most acts of vandalism. Many teenagers, despite numerous warnings and installed prohibition signs, were found in the fountain, twisting nozzles, tearing off the granite covering from the upper bowl, and damaging the upper bowl's pipelines.
All restoration and damage repair work is carried out by specialists of the «Service Center», who, despite all the challenges of wartime, continue to perform their duties with dignity.
