FDNY Boat Named for Firefighter Lost on 9/11

Construction of FDNY’s newest fireboat, William M. Feehan, has been completed by shipbuilder MetalCraft Marine Incorporated, and is slated for delivery and christening in the coming weeks.

The name of the new boat honors veteran firefighter William Feehan, who at 71 was the oldest of 343 firefighters to pass away in the line of duty on September 11, 2001. The vessel’s nameplate, displayed prominently alongside the cabin, is milled from an I-beam lifted from the rubble of the World Trade Center.

Feehan remains the only FDNY member to have held every rank in the department, from probationary firefighter up to fire commissioner, and was said to have known the location of every fire hydrant in New York – a true “fireman's fireman,” according to Salvatore Pastore, a lieutenant with FDNY Marine Company 6 as well a liaison to MetalCraft for the build of the new vessel.

“We'll never forget any of the firefighters we lost that day,” Pastore said, “but this lets 'Chief' Feehan's family know that we're remembering him in a special way.”

The state-of-the-art vessel, a slightly scaled-down version of MetalCraft’s staple FireStorm 70 (traditionally four feet wider, slightly longer and has a larger cabin/tool room), has been modified to fit the FDNY’s needs, the builder said.

MetalCraft general manager, Michael Allen, said, “Working with the FDNY team on the build of the William M. Feehan has been a tremendous honor for us at MetalCraft. With the input of the FDNY personnel, we have implemented several new features on this fireboat. The FS70 is our flagship vessel, and the William M. Freehan is undoubtedly our most advanced one to date.”

MetalCraft project manager, Jay Milner, noted that FDNY’s combined knowledge of marine and firefighting aspects has made the new firefighting vessel a “one-of-a-kind machine.”

Dimensions: 66’ x 18’ x 3’

Mission: emergency response, patrol, mobile command center, firefighting, CBRN capable

Crew size: 4 (1 pilot, 1 engineer, 2 fire fighter’s)

• Aluminum Monohull   

• Maximum speed: 41 kts.   

• Cruising speed: 32 kts.  

• (3) C-18 Caterpillar at 1,150 hp each

• (3) HJ 403 Hamilton jets with hoods connected by Z-F transmission 665

• (1) Kohler 20kw

• (1) C-9 Caterpillar at 510 hp dedicated to fire pump

Pumps

• (2) Darley model ZSP 3,000 gpm at 150 psi that can dispense foam to one or both pumps 

• Fuel: twin 500 gal. 

• Potable water: 25 gal.

• (1) Stang fire monitor roof-mounted remote operated with 5,000 gpm at 80 psi

• (4) Elkhart Brass Spit-Fire monitors ( 2 electrically controlled on bow & 2 manual midship ) with 2,000 gpm at 80 psi each

• (2) Storz 6” land supply connection

• 300 lb Purple K dry chemical fire suppression agent

• Feecon 1.5 foam system

• Furuno TZ Touch

• (9) radios

• Simrad Sidescan sonar

• pressurized filter system for on demand CBRN cabin 

• (5) Shox seats

• raked forward windshield

• 2 berths, fridge, microwave, head, shower, sink, lockable storage

• (2) primary patient berths in V-berth

• (1) additional patient berth in main cabin

• SCBA & SCUBA storage

• ABYC

• ABS

• Hinged mast/radar arch

• FLIR  model Voyager III

• (2) Carlisle & Finch spotlight, 25 million candlepower

• (2) 10-passenger Zodiac life rafts

• (1) towing bitt

• FLOCS (fast lube oil change system)