The

Philadelphia Fire Department The Philadelphia Fire Department provides fire protection and emergency medical services (EMS) to the city of Philadelphia. The PFD's official mission is to protect public safety by quick and professional response to emergencies and through the pro ...

started operating the

fireboat A fireboat or fire-float is a specialized watercraft with pumps and nozzles designed for fighting shoreline and shipboard fires. The first fireboats, dating to the late 18th century, were tugboats, retrofitted with firefighting equipmen ...

''Independence'' in 2007. The vessel cost $5 million, $4.5 million of which came from a

FEMA Port Security Grant Since 2002, the Department of Homeland Security has provided Port Security Grants to ports within the United States, to build fireboats. These vessels are thought to help keep the entire United States safer, because, in addition to fighting loca ...

. On September 10, 2010, both the ''Independence'' and a smaller fireboat, the ''Fireboat Seven'', from

Westville, New Jersey Westville is a borough in Gloucester County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2010 U.S. census, the borough's population was 4,288,Paulsboro, New Jersey Paulsboro is a borough in Gloucester County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 6,196, an increase of 99 (+1.6%) from the 2010 census count of 6,097,

. ''Fireboat Seven'' had arrived first, and put the fire out, without assistance. When the ''Independence'' received orders to turn around, when it was near the dock, she reversed quickly, generating a wake so large it caused ''fireboat seven'' to alide with shore-side equipment. Westville's insurance adjuster determined that ''Fireboat Seven'' was damaged beyond repair. After a failure to reach an out-of-court settlement, Westville sued Philadelphia. Philadelphia countersued. On July 30, 2014, Westville initiated a lawsuit in Federal Court. Philadelphia finally settled, on March 31, 2016, for $117,000.

References

{{Reflist, refs= {{cite news , url = http://www.courierpostonline.com/story/news/2016/03/31/westville-philadelphia-fire-boat/82471904/ , title = Westville's 'war' finally comes to an end , publisher =

Courier Post The ''Courier-Post'' is a morning daily newspaper that serves South Jersey in the Delaware Valley. It is based in Cherry Hill, New Jersey and serves most of Burlington, Camden, and Gloucester counties. The paper has 30,313 daily paid subscriber ...

, date = 2016-03-31 , author = Jim Walsh , archiveurl = https://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.courierpostonline.com%2Fstory%2Fnews%2F2016%2F03%2F31%2Fwestville-philadelphia-fire-boat%2F82471904%2F&date=2018-09-05 , archivedate = 2018-09-05 , url-status = live , quote = England repelling the Spanish Armada in 1588. The United States smashing a Japanese fleet at Midway in 1942. And for the last six years, Westville and Philadelphia fighting over a fire boat. {{cite news , url = http://articles.philly.com/2014-07-30/news/52192668_1_westville-fire-boat-philadelphia-fire-department , title = Westville, Phila. battle over fire boat claim , author = Barbara Boyer , publisher =

Philadelphia Inquirer ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'' is a daily newspaper headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The newspaper's circulation is the largest in both the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the Delaware Valley metropolitan region of Southeastern Pennsy ...

, date = 2014-07-30 , archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20150920042302/http://articles.philly.com/2014-07-30/news/52192668_1_westville-fire-boat-philadelphia-fire-department , archivedate = 2015-09-20 , url-status = dead , quote = According to the lawsuit, on the evening of Sept. 16, 2010, Westville firefighters arrived first in their FB7 vessel, contained the blaze, and advised Philadelphia that further assistance was not needed from the city's boat, the Independence. {{cite news , url = http://www.nj.com/gloucester-county/index.ssf/2014/07/westville_suing_philadelphia_for_140k_over_2010_fire_boat_damage.html , title = Westville suing Philadelphia for $140K over 2010 fire boat damage , publisher =

South Jersey Times The ''South Jersey Times'' is a newspaper serving the South Jersey area of New Jersey. It began publication on November 4, 2012, following a merger of three affiliated papers, ''Gloucester County Times'', ''The News of Cumberland County'' and '' ...

, author = Jason Laday , date = 2014-07-28 , archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20160919202356/http://www.nj.com/gloucester-county/index.ssf/2014/07/westville_suing_philadelphia_for_140k_over_2010_fire_boat_damage.html , archivedate = 2016-09-19 , url-status = live , quote = Westville's fire boat No. 7 was dispatched to the scene, as was the Independence, a fireboat in the Philadelphia Fire Department's Marine Unit. {{cite news , url = http://ral.ca/2007/12/20/ranger-2000-class-fireboat-independence-philadelphia-robert-allan-ltd/ , title = Ranger 2000 class fireboat Independence for Philadelphia from Robert Allan Ltd. , work =

Robert Allan Limited Robert Allan Ltd. is Canada's oldest privately owned consulting Naval Architectural firm, established in Vancouver, British Columbia in 1930. Their experience includes designs for vessels of almost all types, from small fishing boats to ocean- ...

, date = 2007-12-20 , archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20170421141132/http://ral.ca/2007/12/20/ranger-2000-class-fireboat-independence-philadelphia-robert-allan-ltd/ , archivedate = 2017-04-21 , accessdate = 2018-09-05 , url-status = live , quote = This new fast response, shallow-draft fireboat, which is of all-welded aluminium construction, is designed to specifically address the fire fighting and rescue needs of the Philadelphia region waterfront. {{cite news , url = http://www.maritimejournal.com/news101/tugs,-towing-and-salvage/tug_designer_finds_independence_in_philadelphia , title = Tug designer finds {{'''Independence''{{' in Philadelphia , work = Maritime Journal , date = 2008-01-27 , accessdate = 2018-09-05 , quote = Shortly before Christmas the City of Philadelphia Fire Department commissioned ' Independence' , the new RAnger 2000 Class fireboat designed by Robert Allan Ltd and built by Derektor Shipyards of Bridgeport in Connecticut. Fireboats of the United States

See also

References