Sept. 05--BRIDGEPORT -- The present and the future of waterborne fire safety bobbed next to each other at the city pier Wednesday.
The Bridgeport Fire Department's new boat is a substantial upgrade, with a water gun capable of supplying 2,000 gallons per minute, a pressurized cabin that will allow firefighters to get closer to hazardous material spills safely and three outboard engines that allow a top speed of nearly 50 mph.
The $697,000 craft, purchased with a federal Homeland Security/Port Security grant, was delivered two weeks ago and is scheduled to enter service as soon as all of the crew completes 100 hours of training, Capt. Edward McCann said. Many of the Engine 3 firefighters who will serve on the boat have completed the intensive training, he said.
With Steel Point as a backdrop, U.S. Rep. Jim Himes, D-Conn., and Mayor Bill Finch stressed the need for the state-of-the-art boat as waterfront development continues. The Bridgeport-Port Jefferson Ferry will move its dock to another spot along the harbor, and the city will soon take delivery of water taxis that will bring residents to Pleasure Beach, as well as a new boat for the Police Department.
"Steel Point has been a punch line for a generation," Himes said, "but you see earth-moving equipment over there now, and there will be commerce, jobs, walkways and people soon, as the city continues to reclaim its waterfront."
Finch noted that the Fire Department's current boat, also purchased with federal funds, will be donated to the Fairfield Fire Department.
There is a lot of cooperation and coordination among coastal communities, the mayor said.
"Our fire departments don't know boundaries," he said. "They only know public safety and service."
The new 33-foot craft, built by Safe Boats in Bremerton, Wash., will increase protection of important infrastructure, including a fuel oil tank farm, Finch said.
The water gun can deliver as much or more water to a fire than a master line mounted on a tower truck, McCann said.
"It can lift a car off the ground," he said, and the boat will also carry equipment that can detect chemicals, weapons, explosive charges and other hazardous materials.
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