North Hudson Regional Fire & Rescue has loaned their fireboat to the Bayonne Fire Department after theirs was significantly damaged by a tugboat crashing into the marina where it was docked.
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
“Mutual aid agreements are crucial to our ability to respond effectively in emergency situations and have proven to be vital to our success as one of the premier fire departments in the country,” Richard Turner, the Weehawken mayor and chair of NHRFR’s Management Committee.
“We are very fortunate to have the resources to lend to our neighboring departments when they need assistance, and we’re happy to be able to provide this support to Bayonne.”
Originally acquired from the Palisade Interstate Parkway Police for only a dollar, it was transformed into a fully equipped fireboat that was to be used as a spare by the New Jersey Regional Fireboat Task Force and maintained by NHRFR.
Both NHRFR and Bayonne are members of the New Jersey Regional Fireboat Task Force (NJRFTF), which was formed in collaboration with the U.S. Coast Guard to establish interagency communication and cooperation across the Port of New York and New Jersey.
To that end, NHRFR also serves as the dispatch center for NJRFTF.
In collaboration with the Fire Department of New York as well as the New Jersey State Police, NJRFTF protects over 50 miles of New Jersey shoreline and includes 12 fire departments: Edgewater, North Hudson Regional Fire & Rescue, Hoboken, Jersey City, Bayonne, Newark, Secaucus, Kearny, Elizabeth, Carteret, Linden, and Perth Amboy.
That number is rising however, as the Secaucus Police Department and Palisade Interstate Parkway Police recently announced their intention to join the NJRFTF.
