Flotte Hamburg GmbH & Co. KG is a wholly owned subsidiary of HPA. Established in 2017, the company charters out roughly 50 ships which are used jointly by the harbour police, the fire brigade, HPA and the city authorities for streets, bridges and waterways (LSBG). This pooling solution across several entities creates numerous synergies and, above all, allows for high efficiency and performance, as the vessels can be used in multiple ways and thus utilised to a higher capacity. The finances saved as a result enabled the construction of the new 18.5-million-euro fireboat “Branddirektor Westphal”. Read more about the purpose and objectives of Hamburg’s fleet here.
The new fireboat is a quantum leap in safety equipment in the Port of Hamburg. At a length of 43 metres and a beam of 10 metres, it is Europe’s largest fireboat. It was named after Johannes Westphal, the first fire director following World War II. On board the vessel is a first-aid station featuring the full range of ambulance equipment, a self-protection system and a safe-air system. In addition, the vessel has been outfitted with a dynamic positioning system and an environmentally friendly exhaust gas treatment system. “Branddirektor Westphal” was launched on 24 May 2018 at the Fassmer shipyard in Bremen, and will be christened on 26 November 2018. Once crew training is complete, the fireboat will go into service in 2019. Additional, smaller fireboats will soon be complementing the fleet.
• Length of 43 m, beam of 10 m
• Capacity of 32 firefighters
• Range of the 3 water cannons of up to 180 m in width and 110 m in height
• Water pump output of 120,000 l/min
• Maximum speed of 12 kn (22 km/h)
• Diesel particulate filter and catalytic converter according to the EU5 emissions standard
