1. History

2. Firefighting
    1989 Marina District fires 

3. Ceremonial appearances

4. Crew and maintenance

5. References

6. External links

Phoenix is a fireboat owned by State of California and operated by the city of San Francisco in the San Francisco Bay since 1955. Phoenix is known for helping to save Marina District buildings from further destruction by fire following the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake. Her worthy assistance resulted in a second vintage fireboat obtained for the city. Both Guardian and Phoenix are based at Firehouse No. 35 at Pier 22½ of the Port of San Francisco. Phoenix often leads parades of ships, and takes part in welcoming ceremonies.

History

The city of San Francisco operated two fireboats in the 1900s: Governor Irwin and Governor Markham. Both were capable of pumping about {{convert|1000|gal|L}} per minute. These two, assisted by tugboats and military fireboats, tried but failed to stop the horrific fires which swept the city after the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. In 1909, two new fireboats were placed in service—David Scannell and Dennis T. Sullivan—steam-powered boats each rated for {{convert|9000|-|10000|gal|L}} per minute.^[1][2] A firehouse was built for them at the edge of the Panama–Pacific International Exposition in 1915. This firehouse was moved by barge to Pier 22½ near the intersection of Harrison Street and Embarcadero following the Exposition, when the old fair buildings were being torn down and the Marina District was being built in its place.^[3] The two fireboats served the city for 45 years and were scrapped in 1954.^[4]

To fill the anticipated lack of a fireboat, Phoenix was built in 1954 in Alameda by Hugh F. Munroe of Plant Shipyard, paid for by the State of California.^[4][5] Her name came from a contest publicized by the Port Authority; the winning suggestion was submitted by a member of the Phoenix Society, a group of San Francisco citizens interested in civil fire protection. Phoenix, the mythical firebird which rose anew from ashes, seemed appropriate because the city of San Francisco had risen seven times from great fires.^[6]

Two decades later, Phoenix was the subject of discussions about the city budget. In the late 1970s, the fireboat's annual operating expenses were about $1.2 million.^[8] Mayor George Moscone met with the San Francisco Port Commission in 1977 to determine whether Phoenix would be refurbished, replaced, or scrapped with no replacement.^[9] An improvement bond was passed in November 1977 to build a new fireboat. Local naval architects Morris Guralnick Associates submitted a design in 1980 to replace Phoenix, but the estimated construction costs far exceeded the bond. Instead, Mayor Dianne Feinstein redirected the funds to refurbish Phoenix in 1981–1982.^[10]

Firefighting

Local shipping accidents are among the responsibilities of the Phoenix. In September 1965, the Norwegian freighter MS Berganger collided with the tanker Independent, resulting in fires aboard the ships. Phoenix responded along with U.S. Coast Guard fireboats to quickly put out the freighter's blaze, but the tanker took longer to extinguish.^[13] A year later, a gasoline barge collided with rocks near the shore. While Phoenix and the Coast Guard were investigating, the barge exploded killing two Coast Guardsmen and one nearby workman. Phoenix rescued a third Coast Guardsman with severe injuries, and fought to snuff the blaze. Flaming, floating gasoline proved difficult to subdue.^[14] In December 2011, a tourist DUKW boat suffered an engine fire while in McCovey Cove, and Phoenix doused the flames while the Coast Guard rescued the passengers and crew.^[15]

1989 Marina District fires

At 6:49 pm fire crews waiting to connect to Phoenix reported she was having difficulty getting close enough because of low tide conditions.^[20] Despite the problems requiring pilot and commander Arvid Havneras^[21] to perform an extraordinarily hazardous docking procedure, at 7:00 pm Phoenix was ready to pump at the Marina lagoon, two blocks away from the first fire. By this time the whole neighborhood was threatened with destruction by fire.^[16] Fire crews were manning hoses laid in anticipation; firefighters at the burning buildings were instructed to hold their ground, that they would soon have more water.^[20]

Subsequent to the 1989 earthquake, $50,000 from grateful Marina property owners, and $300,000 from an anonymous donor were used to provide Phoenix with a colleague.^[7] Guardian, an older fireboat built in 1951, was purchased from the City of Vancouver, British Columbia, and refurbished. She was piloted down the Pacific Coast to dock alongside Phoenix at Pier 22½.^[7] In 1999, the shared fireboat house was declared San Francisco's 225th Historic Landmark.^[25]

A planned monument to the 1989 earthquake, the Marina Earthquake Memorial, focuses on the role of Phoenix in the Marina firefighting effort and will incorporate the original 16-foot-high (5 m) tower monitor from Phoenix as a centerpiece of the memorial design.^[26]

Ceremonial appearances

Crew and maintenance

Phoenix is normally operated with a crew of one vessel command Fireboat officer, one engineer who operates the pumps and engines, one pilot who steers/navigates the boat, one fire Engine company officer, and three to five firefighters to handle hoses and nozzles.^[4][22] Firehouse 35 on Pier 22½ has seven men on duty at all times: four to serve Engine #35, and three dedicated to the two fireboats. All seven are able to man the fireboats in an emergency.^[7] As many as ten men can work Phoenix, but in October 1989 after Engine #35 was called to duty, only three were available: Pilot Arvid Havneras, Engineer Nate Hardy, and Lieutenant Bob Banchero.^[22] Both fireboat pilot and engineer are licensed by the US Coast Guard.

In the early 2000s, San Francisco spent $1.7 million each year to operate its two fireboats. Maintenance problems on the historic vessels increased to the point that Phoenix needed to be lifted into dry dock for extensive repairs to the hull. The fireboat was thoroughly renovated in 2004 at Bayside Boatworks in Sausalito, California.^[33]

References

• {{citation |url=http://www.sfmuseum.org/quake/revawss.html |title=Water Supply System Review |work=Report on the Operations of the San Francisco Fire Department Following the Earthquake and Fire of October 17, 1989 |last=Postel |first=Frederick F. |date=October 17, 1990}}

External links

• SF Phoenix fireboat
• San Francisco Parks Marina Earthquake Memorial
• "Fireboat Practices", San Francisco Fire Department training manual

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