Seattle fireboat fleet improving

When smoke filled the pilot's cabins of the two Seattle fireboats fighting a pier fire on Lake Union earlier this month, firefighters donned oxygen masks so they could breathe. On the deck of one fireboat, the 80-year-old Alki, crew members twisted large, bright-red wheels by hand to aim water cannons at the flames.

The technology used by Seattle's fireboats to douse the July 5 fire at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Pacific Marine Operations Center is decades old — but about to get a major upgrade.

Earlier this month, the Seattle Fire Department added a new fireboat — dubbed Engine 1 — to its fleet. By 2008, Seattle will renovate one of its two fireboats and replace the second, 123-foot-long Alki, with a slightly smaller but more efficient boat that has remote-controlled water cannons.

"We're just pleased as punch," said Battalion Chief Michael Walsh.

The department has been hoping to improve its firefighting fleet for years, Walsh said. But the money wasn't there until voters approved a $167 million emergency-response levy in 2003.

Having three boats means the department will have easy access by water to all areas of the city at all times, Walsh said.

The fireboat Chief Seattle, which will be renovated, is docked in saltwater on Elliott Bay. The Alki is docked in fresh water at Fishermen's Terminal.

Every other year, each vessel spends one to three weeks at the shipyard for repairs and maintenance, said Dick Chester, chief engineer of Seattle's marine emergency-response team. Only one boat is available during this period, meaning a slower response time for the other boat if an emergency happens on the other side of the Ballard Locks, Chester said.

With a third vessel, the department will have a boat in saltwater and fresh water at all times, Walsh said.

In addition, ventilation systems in the two new boats will remove many toxins from the air during fires, replacing the cumbersome masks firefighters must use now.

One of the new boats, the Leschi, is expected to pump 20,000 gallons of water per minute and travel at 14 knots, compared with the Alki's 16,500 gallon-per-minute capacity and top speed of 12 knots. The Leschi's ability to hold 20,000 gallons of diesel fuel should allow it to blast water for 72 hours straight, Chester said.

Engine 1, 50 feet shorter than the other fireboats, can maneuver in tight spaces. Moving at 30 knots, it should also be able to reach emergencies faster than its sister vessels.

After a renovation that will add about 20 years to its life, the Chief Seattle should pump 10,000 gallons of water a minute, 2,500 gallons more than before, and almost seven times what an average fire engine can accomplish.

And the Alki will be retired.

Charlotte Hsu: 206-464-8349 or chsu@seattletimes.com