The ''St Mungo'' was a

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 ...

operated by Glasgow Fire Services, in

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

, Scotland, from 1959 to 1975. When launched, she was described as the most modern fireboat in the United Kingdom.

History

The ''St Mungo'' replaced an earlier steam powered fireboat. Glasgow was once one of the busiest ports in the United Kingdom, and the ''St Mungo'' and earlier vessels provided an important service. However, by 1975 when the Strathclyde Fire Brigade was formed through the amalgamation of Glasgow Fire Services with neighbouring fire services, Glasgow's use of the

River Clyde The River Clyde ( gd, Abhainn Chluaidh, , sco, Clyde Watter, or ) is a river that flows into the Firth of Clyde in Scotland. It is the ninth-longest river in the United Kingdom, and the third-longest in Scotland. It runs through the major cit ...

had changed, and the vessels declared surplus, and retired. She was sold in 1978 to serve as an offshore tender.

Propulsion

She was propelled by twin

diesel engine The diesel engine, named after Rudolf Diesel, is an internal combustion engine in which ignition of the fuel is caused by the elevated temperature of the air in the cylinder due to mechanical compression; thus, the diesel engine is a so-call ...

s, at up to 9 knots. Each diesel was rated at

Pumps

The ''St Mungo''s two turbine water

pump A pump is a device that moves fluids (liquids or gases), or sometimes slurries, by mechanical action, typically converted from electrical energy into hydraulic energy. Pumps can be classified into three major groups according to the method they u ...

s could each provide 3,000 gallons per minute. The turbine pumps provided water to up to six

water cannon A water cannon is a device that shoots a high-velocity stream of water. Typically, a water cannon can deliver a large volume of water, often over dozens of meters. They are used in firefighting, large vehicle washing, riot control, and mining ...

s. Each turbine pump was powered by a diesel rated at .

References

{{Reflist, refs= {{cite web , url = http://www.sfrheritagetrust.org/st_mungo.htm , title = The St Mungo: Glasgow's Fire Boat on The Clyde , publisher = Scottish Fire and Rescue Heritage Trust {{cite book , accessdate = 2015-10-16 , isbn = 9781445618654 , url = https://books.google.com/books?id=BvzBBQAAQBAJ&dq=fireboat+glasgow+%22St+Mungo%22&pg=PT111 , title = Glasgow: A history , author = Michael Meighan , publisher =

Amberley Publishing Amberley Publishing are a firm of publishers in Stroud, Gloucestershire, who specialise in non-fiction transport and history books. They were established in 2008 and the chief executive is Nick Hayward who previously worked at AudioGo and Simon a ...

, date = 2013-12-17 {{cite web , author = Graeme Kirkwood , title = Fire Boats , url = http://www.btinternet.com/~graeme.kirkwood/SFB/FB.htm , accessdate = 16 December 2011 , archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20050319004803/http://www.btinternet.com/~graeme.kirkwood/SFB/FB.htm , archivedate = 19 March 2005 , url-status = dead {{cite web , url = http://www.theglasgowstory.com/image/?inum=TGSA01969 , title = Fireboat St Mungo: Glasgow City Archives, Deposited Collections , publisher = The Glasgow Story Fireboats of the United Kingdom