Originally established as the department’s Maritime Incident Response Team, it was reorganized with the acquisition of a fireboat, and was re-titled the Portsmouth Fire Department Marine Division. The Marine Division is currently housed at Station 3 on Rivershore Road, and is staffed by twenty-seven specially trained members of our department. Marine Division crew members are  responsible for staffing Squad 3 and Ladder 3, as well as two additional vessels – our 10ft rescue boat, (“Marine 1”), and a 47’ fireboat (“Fireboat 1”).

The flagship of the division is “The City of Portsmouth”, (call sign Fireboat 1), a 47’ vessel manufactured by Metalcraft Marine of Canada. With it’s twin 1750gpm fire pumps, the vessel is capable of flowing in excess of 3,000 gallons of water per minute. Fireboat 1 can also deploy foam during firefighting operations should the need arise. The vessel is also equipped with underwater side-scan sonar, a valuable tool when searching for items under the surface. The division is also in the process of having Currently twelve of the fireboat crewmembers are in the process of obtaining certification as underwater rescue divers.

Additionally the Marine Division also serves as one of three lead jurisdictions on the regional Maritime Incident Response Team (M.I.R.T.). As part of the regional team Station 3 houses two Virginia Port Authority pieces of apparatus; a 3,000 gpm portable fire pump, “Pump 2”, and a tender/support truck for the pump, “Support 2”. Support 2 is equipped with a variety of marine firefighting equipment, including an around-the-pump foam system and a patrogen cutting torch.

Since the creation of the Marine Division our personnel and rescue vessels have responded on numerous incidents including boaters in distress, small vessel fires, searches for victims in the water, as well as an engine room fire aboard a 900’ container ship at anchorage.

With the increase in both commercial and private water traffic, the Marine Division's responsibilities will continue to expand as they continue to assist in the protection of our port.