Fireboats in New Jersey

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Multiple ports in New Jersey operate fireboats.

Newark, New Jersey has a long history of operating fireboats, on the Passaic River.[1] An 1976 profile of the John F. Kennedy reported that it was then the only municipally operated fireboat in the State. It was Newark's fourth fireboat.

Following the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, the Department of Homeland Security has issued generous Port Security grants, to enable cities to acquire fireboats that can also serve to help counter attacks by Weapons of mass destruction.[2] Secaucus, New Jersey purchased a fireboat in the early 2000s, and replaced it with a more capable modern vessel in 2018.[3][4]

Kearny, New Jersey acquired its fireboat in 2013.[5]

The Grande Costa D’Avorio fire of July 5, 2023

When the Grande Costa D’Avorio was struck by fire, on July 5, 2023, Fireboats from New York City came to the assistance of the Newark Fire Department because Newark's fireboats were not in working order.


On July 5, 2023, the Italian freighter Grande Costa D’Avorio was struck by a serious fire, and two firefighters, fire captains, Wayne Brooks Jr. and Augusto Acabou, died after boarding the freighter.[6][7]

Newark firefighters called for help from other New Jersey fire departments, including firefighters from Elizabeth, New Jersey, two of who had to be hospitalized. New York's fireboats took the initiative to proceed across the river to help fight the fire, without a formal request.[8] The Coast Guard eventually took over-all control of the fire. The fire was so hot firefighters had to fight it indirectly, by bombarding the vessel's hull with water, in an attempt to cool it down. It took firefighter five days to finally extinguish the fire.

After official inquiries accident investigators concluded:

  1. Newark firefighters hadn't been trained in how to fight fires on ocean-going vessels in years;[7]
  2. Neither of Newark's two fireboats was operational on the day of the fire;[7]
  3. The firehoses that were part of the Grande Costa D’Avorio fire suppression system were only 1 inch (2.54 cm) in diameter, not the 2.5 inch (6.35 cm) standard for US Fire Departments, and the system lacked fittings Newark firefighters needed to hook up their own hoses;[8]
  4. The crew of the Grande Costa D’Avorio did not know how to use their fire suppression system;
  5. The fire was caused when the engine of a inadequately serviced jeep stevedores used to push a stalled vehicle overheated, and burst into flame, and the primary fuel for the vessel fire was the gasoline in each of the over 1000 Automobiles relied on for stevedores to drive them on board.[8]

References

  1. ↑ Newark's Fireboat Patrols the Passaic, New York Times, 1976-04-20, p. 75. Retrieved on 2022-07-17.
  2. ↑ Al Sullivan. To the rescue: Secaucus fireboat offers protection throughout Hudson County, Hudson Reporter, 2018-12-13. Retrieved on 2022-07-17. “The boat currently used by the fire department was purchased from the North Hudson Regional Fire and Rescue in the early 2000s, a pumper boat with two hose connections that draws water out of the river to help fight fires.”
  3. ↑ Paul Milo. Secaucus Fire Boat Will Help Protect Passaic, Hackensack River Communities, Daily Voice, 2019-08-29. Retrieved on 2022-07-17. “Jersey City, Kearny, Newark and Bayonne are some of the other communities in the region that have marine units.”
  4. ↑ The Secaucus, New Jersey Fire Department Places Lake Assault Boats Firefighting and Rescue Craft Into Service: Versatile vessel is custom built to meet department’s unique challenges., Lake Assault Boats, 2019-09-10. Retrieved on 2022-07-17.
  5. ↑ Anthony J. Machcinski. Kearny's 'unique' new fire boat praised by local officials, The Jersey Journal, 2013-07-18. Retrieved on 2022-07-17. “The Kearny Fire Department started the process of getting its new fire boat in 2009, when the department applied for a Port Security grant. The grant was awarded to the department the following year, and a committee was created to work on the specifications for the new boat.”
  6. ↑ ‘Deaths were preventable,’ say anguished family members of 2 firefighters lost in Port Newark fire, NJ.com, 2024-01-17. Retrieved on 2024-01-18.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Wayne Parry. Union, kin of firefighters killed in cargo ship blaze call for new Newark fire department leadership, Washington Post, 2024-01-17. Retrieved on 2024-01-18. “And Jackson testified that on the day of the fire, both of Newark’s fire boats were in working condition and able to be deployed, only to be contradicted by the head of a fire boat task force who testified that both of Newark’s boats were not in service that day. In fact, one had not been fit for duty for at least a year, said Francis Gorman, head of the New Jersey Regional Fireboat Task Force.”
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Tracey Tully, Mike Ives, Elise Young. How 2 Firefighters Died in a Blaze They Were Ill-Equipped to Face, New York Times, 2023-07-06, p. A10. Retrieved on 2024-01-18. “Firefighters who raced to the scene from Engine 16 quickly learned that their standard, 2.5-inch hose lines would not connect to the equipment on the European-built ship, the Grande Costa d’Avorio. They were forced to use the vessel’s one-inch firefighting hoses, Newark’s mayor, Ras J. Baraka, would later explain.”
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