VESSEL REVIEW | Catamaran response boat delivered to California’s Alameda Fire Department

Vallejo, California-based Lind Marine, through its Moose Boats boatbuilding division, has handed over a new response boat to the Alameda Fire Department (AFD) in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area.

The new boat was purchased as a replacement for Deanna Jo, an earlier vessel acquired by the AFD in 2014. The replacement needed to possess the ability to deliver an adequate water supply in the event of emergencies – a necessity in the event Alameda suffers from a decrease in water supply such as following an earthquake.

"The fireboat can supplement firefighting water needs if existing infrastructure is overwhelmed," Cody Moxley, AFD Deputy Chief of Operations, told Baird Maritime. "According to the HayWired Study conducted by the US Geological Survey, the Hayward fault experiences a major earthquake every 100 to 220 years; the last one was 152 years ago. The study also predicts that the region will experience over 400 fires (up to 52,000 residential structures burned), and communities will be without water supplies for up to six months."

Multi-role emergency response platform

The new boat was also required to provide a platform for fire protection for commercial and residential waterfront infrastructure (including marinas); regional maritime fire and rescue services for other vessels ranging from small craft to large ships; oil spill response; search and rescue (SAR); response support to the waterways surrounding the Oakland and San Francisco airports; command and control following HAZMAT, WMD and terrorism incidents; and supporting the activities of the US Coast Guard and other agencies in neighbouring jurisdictions. These and other requirements were used as justification for the acquisition of the new boat.

Moxley said the AFD wanted a boat that could meet its basic needs such as a larger pumping capacity for shoreline fires and emergency water supply, a better platform to work off for water rescues and dive operations, and better manoeuvrability for accessing tight spaces.

"This purchase was approved by the City of Alameda's local government due to the vessel's ability to augment the city's water supply in the event that the domestic water supply is overwhelmed or crippled by an earthquake," added Ken Royal, Vice President of Sales at Moose Boats. "This vessel and its inherent capabilities of reaching shallow waters and delivering large volumes of water flow will aid other water resources throughout the Bay Area including that in Alameda."

Firefighting versatility in a compact hull

The AFD catamaran vessel has an LOA of 38.8 feet (11.8 metres), a beam of 13.5 feet (4.11 metres), a draught of 24 inches (0.6 metre), and a displacement of 10.5 tons (9.5 tonnes) at full load. The propulsion arrangement consists of two Cummins QSB6.7 480hp (360kW) diesel engines driving Hamilton HJX29 waterjets via Twin Disc 5075SC gearboxes to deliver a top speed of 38 knots and a range of 280 nautical miles at a cruising speed of 30 knots.

The firefighting equipment includes four monitors connected to two Darley PTO-driven pumps that can be controlled from the helm station. The pump configuration yields up to 5,000 gallons (18,927 litres) per minute of fire-flow out of the  monitors (on the bow, on top of the cabin, plus one each port and starboard) and the large-diameter discharges.

"The challenge lay mainly in designing the system used to govern the powerful drive engines to the fire pumps," Royal told Baird Maritime. "This required electronic 'black box technology' integrations used to prevent overpowering the pump capacities."

The work on the new fireboat nonetheless taught Moose Boats that the company can offer an extremely large capacity fire-flow vessel at a relatively small size in which most personnel can operate without the need for large tonnage licensing.

The boat also has space for eight additional personnel such as divers and rescued survivors besides the four-strong crew. The electronics suite meanwhile includes four Raymarine Axiom 12 multifunction displays with encrypted AIS and FLIR cameras to allow firefighting and rescue operations to be undertaken even in poor visibility. A separate sonar operator/navigator's station is located behind the helm seat and is to be used in conjunction with dive operations.

The cabin layout has been customised to maximise seating, storage, and dive equipment utilisation.

"There are also separate compartments designed to house ancillary anchors for dive operations," Royal said. "There is a davit with interchangeable port and starboard receivers and a rescue board mounted on a swim platform with a quick release pin. This will help facilitate victim recovery from the water without having to commit rescuers into the water themselves."

Other notable features on the AFD boat include a heated glass windscreen, a Hammond air conditioner, and 13 rigid light bars integrated around the entire exterior of the pilothouse railings and the hull railings for enhanced nighttime illumination.