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Arlington Hts. public works fastest fixers of water mains in Illinois

When a water main breaks in Arlington Heights, residents can be assured that the fastest team in the state is on the job to fix it.

Members of the Arlington Heights Public Works staff were recognized at Monday's village board meeting for their first-place win at the Illinois section of the American Water Works Association Tapping Contest.

"It's a reflection of the great work they do for our village on a daily basis in terms of fixing those broken water mains," said Mayor Tom Hayes.

"We very much appreciate and congratulate them."

This is the third year in a row that the Arlington Heights team has placed first in the state, said utilities superintendent Jeff Musinski. The team will move on to compete at the national level in June in Anaheim.

The men's team made up of Dave Nordin, Ryan Holthouse, John Preucil and Adam Swanson finished the competition in less than two minutes, Musinski said.

Two women from Arlington Heights - Vee Trevino and Briget Schwab - were also a part of the winning women's team at the state level.

During the competition, members of the team tap into a water main as quickly as possible while another member assembles copper to complete the connection.

"It's a pretty big deal," said Village Manager Randy Recklaus. "We strive at the village to be the very best at doing what we do, but it's rare that you can really compare yourself to others in a quantifiable way."

It's a skill that, aside from winning the teams two large trophies to be displayed at village hall and the public works building, translates to the streets to help the village.

"We maintain a couple hundred miles of water mains, and from time to time they do break and the crew has to go out and work as quickly as possible to provide as little of a disruption as possible," Recklaus said.

The fast speed may come from an abundance of experience fixing water main breaks.

Arlington Heights has 260 miles of water mains with an average age of 61 years, according to a village memo circulated before the village board voted in 2014 to approve a water and sewer rate increase to pay for upgrades to the system.

The American Water Works Association estimates between 25 and 30 water main breaks a year for every 100 miles of water main, but over the last five years, Arlington Heights is averaging 94 breaks per 100 miles, according to the memo.

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