Fireboat 1, the John Glenn, was acquired from FDNY in 1977. The 70’ craft has two 3500 GPM pumps (shown to us by JAWS in post 852), two built-in foam tanks (supplying two manifold discharges and the pilothouse monitor), and is driven by three V12 diesels. The outboard engines drive the pumps while the center one stays online for navigation. In 1978, the tower behind the pilothouse was removed to reduce the height to 16’ 6” in order to clear the bridges. The 5’ draught keeps the vessel away from the shallows, and the 16’ height keeps it south of 14th St. in high tide.
Kevin Byrne