page_title: Leschi (fireboat)
section_title: Background
hierarchical_section_title: Leschi (fireboat) / History / Background
caption_attribution_description: Container ship Hanjin Ottawa manouevres away from the terminal at Harbor Island as the Bainbridge Island ferry enters the Port of Seattle. Photograph taken from the viewing deck of the Space Needle IMO Number: 9200718 MMSI Number: 211378360 Callsign: DANM Length: 279 m Beam: 32 m
context_page_description: Leschi, named for the native American leader Chief Leschi, is a fireboat operated by the Seattle Fire Department. The ship was laid down in 2006 and commissioned in 2007; its sponsor was Sharon Nickels, wife of the then-mayor Greg Nickels.
  The 108-foot Leschi has been described as the "dreadnought of Seattle's fireboat fleet". Carrying a normal complement of four, its mission includes firefighting, search and rescue, and response to chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and explosive emergencies. It can also be used as a mobile pump and fuel station and as emergency medical treatment and command center.
context_section_description: Seattle is one of the largest ports on the United States west coast and waterfront fires have been a continual concern for the city. Since 1891 the Seattle Fire Department has regularly operated at least two fireboats, which can be augmented by ships and small craft with fire suppression capabilities from the U.S. Coast Guard, Seattle Police, and neighboring municipalities. One of the worst maritime fires in the city's history occurred in 1968 when an electrical malfunction at Todd Shipyards sparked a fire that took 14 engine companies, two fireboats, two U.S. Coast Guard cutters, and several conscripted Foss Maritime tugboats more than half-a-day to extinguish.
  In the 1970s the United States Maritime Administration funded a special program to train a contingent of 50 Seattle firefighters to provide land-based support in the control and extinguishing of dockside and shipboard conflagrations. The effort, which was studied by the Stanford Research Institute, later became a model for other waterfront cities.
caption: Maritime and waterfront fires have been a continual concern for Seattle, which is one of the largest ports on the U.S. west coast.
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