San Francisco Bay Area-based boat designer and manufacturer Moose Boats, LLC said in December that it has been awarded a contract by Alameda City Fire Department in Northern California for the construction of an M2–38 catamaran fireboat.
The M2—38 aluminum catamaran is to be powered by twin Cummins QSB6.7L 480HP turbo diesel engines coupled to twin Hamilton HJX29 water-jets. Darley pumps are to provide 5,000GPM of water through two five-inch discharges, two four-inch discharges, eight 2.5-inch discharges, and four monitors.
Moose Boats did not reveal the dollar amount of the contract or when the vessel is scheduled to be delivered.
“This powerful fireboat will allow for deployment of fire attack hose lines in addition to supplemental water supply for land-based operations,” Moose Boats said in a statement. “Additionally, the new Moose Fire Boat will provide for enhanced dive and water rescue operations with an integrated dive/recovery platform for the (Alameda Fire Department) Dive Team.”
The catamaran also has a planned draft of under 24 inches, which would give it the ability to operate in the shallow waters that surround Alameda.
The Alameda Fire Department serves the City of Alameda, where a majority of the city is an island within the San Francisco Bay accessible only by multiple bridges and the Posey & Webster Tubes. Alameda is home to a wide variety of marinas, beaches, waterfront homes and multiple ferry terminals.
The municipal fire department has a Marine Operation Program that consists of a regional sub-surface Dive Team, water rescue swimmers, inflatable rescue boats, and a fire boat. Since most of the city is surrounded by water and utilized by a wide array of both commercial and recreational vessels, the fire department must be prepared to respond to a variety of marine emergencies.
Moose Boats LLC, a division of the Lind Marine shipyard, builds aluminum vessels that are designed to meet a variety of mission-specific applications for law enforcement, fire/rescue, security and military applications. The company says that it has built and delivered over 100 vessels of similar design for the U.S. Navy, as well as various law enforcement and firefighting agencies nationwide.