Another type of vessel has been taking a spin on the popular Beach Drive test track. Joining Delta Marine and the WA State Ferries is a brand spanking new 108′ fire boat built by Foss Maritime & bound for the Port of Long Beach California. The super pumper named “Fire Boat 20” tested forward & reverse for most of the day along the drive this morning.
According to Pacific Maritime Magazine…
The Long Beach pair each carry four Caterpillar 3512-C main engines, producing a total of more than 8,000 HP. Two engines are dedicated for pumping only, while two do double duty – propulsion and simultaneously adding more pumping power for a total of over 40,000 gpm. A pair of Cat C12 150-kW gensets provides the boats’ electric power. The largest monitor will be capable of delivering 12,000 gpm at a 600-foot range. The other nine monitors range from 1,500 to 6,000 gpm. Top speed is 12 knots – sufficient for a compact port like Long Beach. The low-wash speed is eight knots and on-site endurance is five days.
Being one of the most technically advanced emergency boats in the world, it even has systems that protects the firefighters from chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear threats. I looked into buying one to protect Beach Drive but couldn’t negotiate them down from the 25+ mil price tag!
Scupper, reporting for Beach Drive Blog
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Thank you – explains an inquiry on the WSB Facebook page asking why a fire boat has “been in Puget Sound for hours.” I asked where in Puget Sound, no reply yet, but I’m sure he met this, so we’ll share the link.
🙂
Thank you, I was wondering what that boat was!
Scupper, you are spot on regarding Prop 1. I just filled out my ballot and I couldn’t mark NO fast enough?
Hi WSNative – we’re going to copy this comment onto Scupper’s Prop 1 post 🙂