Ship & Boat International: eNews August 2019
Lake Assault Boats of Wisconsin reports that it is close to completing a 9.14m river rescue craft for the City of Pittsburgh River Rescue Unit, Pennsylvania. Due for delivery before autumn is out, the vessel will undertake various emergency response tasks, including riverine rescues and evacuation of sick cruise ship passengers, as well as transporting SWAT teams and their vehicles to crisis locations.
Additionally, the craft will support firefighting efforts and security operations in the Port of Pittsburgh, and will help to enforce Pennsylvania’s Fish & Boat Code. From time to time, it will leave its home port to fulfil mutual aid agreements with other first responder units.
The boat will be fitted with twin 317kW Yamaha outboards, plus Yamaha’s joystick-controlled Helm Master steering and digital anchoring system, which is designed for enhanced manoeuvrability at slow speeds. This engine arrangement will grant the craft a top speed of just over 39knots. The newbuild will also be fitted with a Darley fire pump, rated 2,840litres per minute, which will be stored in a recessed deck compartment with through-hull suction into a sea chest.
The pilothouse will feature a length of 3.05m and a clearance height of 2.03m, and will house “the same medical gear found in a traditional ambulance,” Lake Assault Boats reveals. Other features will include a 1.88m, hydraulically operated bow door and a heated front deck. The craft will also carry a SCBA dive bottle rack, to support near-surface dive work.
