NEWBURYPORT — Guided into the water by eight eager firefighters, including Newburyport Fire Chief Stephen Bradbury III, the city’s newest fireboat, Raven’s Nest, took its first tour of the Merrimack River on Wednesday afternoon.
“This is perfect for us,” Bradbury said.
Built by Safe Boat International, the 29-foot walk-around cabin is now stationed off Cashman Park after entering the water for the first time a little after 2:30 p.m.
Firefighters spent a few minutes marveling at its many features and testing its engine before Lt. Stephen Hamilton took it for its first test drive.
Taking small laps around the harbor up to the Gillis Bridge and back for 10 minutes as firefighters marveled at the boat’s power, Hamilton eventually returned to the dock to begin giving members of the department rides.
The boat was delivered to the fire department’s Greenleaf Street station back in December, marking the end of a roughly 18-month process that began after the department’s last boat, Raven II, sank in the Merrimack River while moored off Cashman Park.
Raven II was the second Newburyport fireboat to be named after Newburyport firefighter Tony Raven, who died after battling a fire on Chapel Street in 2016. Raven I was initially part of the Newburyport fleet but now is part of the fleet in Hyannis.
“So we decided just to mix it up a little bit and go with the Raven’s Nest for the name because the Raven I is still in service,” Bradbury said.
Following Raven II’s sinking, the city received an insurance settlement of $550,527 in the form of a check. That check was deposited into a revenue account for insurance proceeds. At the end of that fiscal year, the funds converted to free cash, which the City Council voted 10-1 to reappropriate for the fireboat.
Bradbury said having the boat in the water and ready for use has him confident in his and surrounding departments’ ability to keep people safe on the Merrimack River.
“We have this boat right here and Salisbury has a boat similar to the Safe Boat, the fully enclosed cabin, and Haverhill has a boat further up, so I think we have the river pretty much covered now,” Bradbury said.
Hamilton will be in charge of training the department on how to use the boat, having spent three days in November training in Bremerton, Washington, where the boat originated.
“The training was basically what will kill me in the boat and what will save me on the boat. They put the boat through its paces, through its maximum performance. We were in the middle of a blizzard. It was pretty amazing out there,” Hamilton said.
The new fireboat is roughly 4 feet longer than Raven II and includes an enclosed cabin. It has a built-in fire pump that can manipulate about 500 gallons of water per minute. It also features two massive outboard engines with enough giddy-up to reach 50 mph but will be operated at far slower speeds.
Bradbury praised the boat’s versatility compared to Raven II, explaining that the new craft will be useful for medical aid as well as fighting fires.
“It can go offshore a little bit, it can get into shallow water, too. The other one was not as versatile. It was pretty much just a fireboat,” Bradbury said.
With joystick steering designed to allow its pilot to get into tight spaces in shallow waters, Bradbury said the biggest difference between the two boats is ease in handling.
“This one will be easy to more of our firefighters,” Bradbury said.
Hamilton, according to Bradbury, will be able to get the rest of the department trained in a couple of weeks. He said they are working with Raven’s family to nail down a future dedication ceremony.
Daily News editor Dave Rogers contributed to this report.
Matt Petry covers Amesbury and Salisbury for The Daily News of Newburyport. Email him at: mpetry@northofboston.com.