The Canaveral Port Authority will receive $1.5 million in funding from the State of Florida to support the acquisition of a specialized fireboat to provide marine firefighting and rescue capabilities for Port Canaveral and the surrounding communities.
The port said its new 65-foot-long «marine firefighting rescue vessel»will be custom-designed «to offer enhanced fire protection and response time capabilities to serve the port’s growing maritime operations and expanding space enterprise in the area.»
The high-tech enhanced maritime firefighting vessel will be equipped with conventional and dry-chemical firefighting apparatus. The vessel will have a minimum pumping capacity of 8,000 gallons per minute and will be equipped with firefighting foam and a Purple-K dry-chemical firefighting system. The vessel will also have an emergency medical treatment area on board and a communications system to function as an on-scene command vessel for maritime rescue operations.
«Port Canaveral has grown tremendously over the last few years and we’re getting ready to homeport North America’s first LNG-powered cruise ship next year. This fireboat will greatly enhance the core capabilities of our first responders to ensure the safety and security of our Port,»said Capt. Murray. «We’re grateful to Sen. Mayfield and Rep. Plasencia and our entire Brevard legislative delegation for their trust in the Port’s role in this community, and we thank Gov. DeSantis and the entire Florida legislature for supporting this important funding.»
