Port Official Demands Answers to Problem With High-Tech Fireboat

This city’s new $2.2-million fireboat Liberty and her sister, the Challenger, were given champagne christenings before 700 dignitaries and guests last year when they were officially mustered into service.

But the 88-foot Liberty has not seen such glorious days recently. First, it struck a floating object and spent a week in dry dock.

Immediately after leaving the repair yard, the Liberty suffered another incident in the engine room that has caused $15,000 worth of damage and has meant a month at a Terminal Island repair yard.

Harbor Commissioner C. Robert Langslet, who questioned the need to purchase the new high-technology fireboats in the first place, is demanding answers on how the second accident occurred.

“I can’t imagine this happening,” an exasperated Langslet said at a Harbor Commission meeting Monday, asking for a full report from the Fire Department. “We’re expected to foot the bill again.”

The boats are among the most sophisticated in the nation. Both are designed to pump up to 10,000 gallons of water or foam a minute from five water cannons, Port of Long Beach officials say.

The force of the blast is so strong that it can push the boat along at 4 knots, requiring water-jet thrusters at the bow and stern to counteract the firefighting guns.

While awesome in their designed performance, the boats have also come with their share of problems since the Challenger was delivered in December, 1986, and the Liberty arrived last April. Deputy Fire Chief Chris Hunter said that maintenance costs have been higher than expected. And because of their sophistication, the boats require more expertise than was required to run the pair of 33-year-old boats they replaced.

“It’s like going from a Model T to a modern car,” Hunter said.

The department, Hunter said, is beefing up training for the boat crews, improving operation manuals and introducing a formal checkoff list as a result of this latest incident. “We will continue to upgrade our training and our skill levels,” he said.

After repair of the propeller that was damaged when the boat hit floating debris, the Liberty left the repair yard in the early morning hours of Feb. 25 to return to duty at Fire Station 20 under the Gerald Desmond Bridge.

Once underway, the engineer on duty noticed that one of the twin propeller shafts was overheating, Hunter said. The shaft was shut down and the engineer checked to make sure a valve was open allowing sea water to cool and lubricate the shaft.

The engineer--whom Hunter declined to identify--then noticed that the other shaft was overheating and smoking. So the engineer switched the right shaft back on and went to work on the left shaft.

By the time the boat returned to its base, bearings in both shafts had burned out, the deputy chief said.

Port Managing Director Charles F. Connors said the engineer should have kept a more careful watch. Because of crew involvement in the incident, Connors told the Harbor Commission that he does not believe the city will be able to file a warranty claim.

No Set Procedures

But Hunter said that after an extensive meeting with the helmsman and engineer, he does not believe the crew was at fault. He said they were hampered by not having procedures to react to the situation.

“I think they followed the procedures that were set,” he said. “There may be need for more training in this area or upgrading of procedures.”

Langslet said he is particularly bothered that the crew does not have a formal step-by-step checklist to follow before starting up the complicated fireboat. “To me, it is inexcusable that we could have an incident of this kind and have people who don’t even have a checklist,” he said.

He noted that fire crews were sent to the builders, Moss Point Marine, in Mississippi when the boats were being constructed and to Seattle, where sister boats are in operation, for training.

“I’d like to have some answers,” Langslet said.

Meanwhile, the port was being protected not only by the Challenger, but by one of the old fireboats hastily returned to service in place of the Liberty.