Sorry, just one more thought.
LabRat's gripe about Clark opening the hydrant is totally justified, and I agree completely with her reasoning. However, the reason the scene was in the show was two-fold. First, it's a long-standing tradition in cities like New York and Philadelphia for civilians (who should never, NEVER do it!) to open up the hydrants to cool off the kids in the neighborhood due to the lack of air-conditioning in most of the lower-income housing areas. Besides, it gives the kids something to do so they'll be a little less likely to throw rocks through windows.
The second reason was to show Clark's concern about kids and his compassion for their plight. If I'd written the episode, I would have tried to find some other solution for the problem, but the writers apparently thought it would be cute, so there you have it.
