New fire boat sets sail along the Gulf

Sometime last week, along the waters of the Mississippi Gulf Coast, you may have seen a new piece of equipment riding the waves.

The Biloxi Fire Department went out for a test drive on their brand new fire boat to get their captains all trained and ready to go. The 33 foot long aluminum boat was constructed in Oregon.

It is equipped with two hose nozzles and a 1500 gallon-per-minute pump, which is larger than the 1250 gallon-per-minute pumps in the city’s fire trucks.

The boat can also utilize the water it floats in as unlimited water supply and the fire department specially trained crew will be able to deploy the new boat for response in less than 30 seconds.