Part Firehouse News

The Port of Houston Authority’s firefighting team recently received the third and last in series of high-performance emergency response vessels, a fleet of new vessels designed to keep one of the country’s busiest and strategically important waterways safe: The Houston Ship Channel. The Port of Houston Fire Department operates three fire stations stationed along the 52-mile-long Channel, and emergency professionals respond to marine and land fires and other emergencies along the upper ship channel.

A two-week voyage through four Great Lakes and the Mississippi River will bring to the Port of Houston Authority’s firefighting team the third of three new, high-performance emergency response vessels. “The Port of Houston is one of the nation’s busiest ports, and protecting this national asset is essential to the economic well-being of Houston, Texas and the nation,” said Port Authority Executive Director Roger Guenther. The Port of Houston Fire Department operates three fire stations, strategically stationed along the 52-mile-long Houston Ship Channel.

A two-week voyage through four Great Lakes and the Mississippi River will bring to the Port of Houston Authority the first of three high-performance fireboats to replace the current fleet. "As the nation's busiest port in terms of foreign tonnage and home to one of the world's largest petrochemical complexes, our firefighting team is second to none in protecting this national asset and the many who work here," said Port Authority Executive Director Len Waterworth. The five-member crew includes three from the Port of Houston Authority's Fire Department.