Historic Seattle fireboat heading to the auction block
SEATTLE -- A piece of Seattle history that has been putting out fires since 1928 is heading to for the auction block.
The Alki might be rough around the edges now, but in her day the vintage vessel was billed as the world's largest fire boat.
"You pick a pier fire or a ship fire that's occurred in Seattle since that time, and this boat has been at it doing what it needs to do," assistant Seattle Fire Chief A.D. Vickery said the Alki, which has seen action on fresh and salt water.
Vickery said the boat has a pumping capacity of more than 16,000 gallons, which might have been considered overkill in the 1920s if not for the fact that Seattle was full of wooden piers on the waterfront.
The Alki spent Thanksgiving in 1968 pouring water on Todd Shipyard, where a firefighter died.
"This is a part of our history. It's a part of our culture, but you can't keep it in your heart when it costs money to operate and we have better ways of doing things," Vickery said.
On Monday, the Alki is heading to an online auction, where bidding will begin at $1. That leaves cash to cover 8,000 gallons of diesel fuel.
"There's a total 16 diesel engines in the engine room," said fireboat engineer Dick Chester.
Voters approved a levy to enhance Seattle's marine firefighting program, and the aging Alki requires more staff than the newer, more technologically-advanced boats.
Alki's engineer still communicates to the wheelhouse using an old telegraph, and the boat fought her last fire on South Lake Union in the summer of 2006.
"It was the first boat to respond and pumped continuously at that fire and maneuvered for 19 hours," Chester said of the July 4 fire.
Firefighters hopes the boat is restored as a reminder of the past and not purchased for scrap. The money raised at the auction will help sustain Seattle's three other fireboats.
The Alki might be rough around the edges now, but in her day the vintage vessel was billed as the world's largest fire boat.
"You pick a pier fire or a ship fire that's occurred in Seattle since that time, and this boat has been at it doing what it needs to do," assistant Seattle Fire Chief A.D. Vickery said the Alki, which has seen action on fresh and salt water.
Vickery said the boat has a pumping capacity of more than 16,000 gallons, which might have been considered overkill in the 1920s if not for the fact that Seattle was full of wooden piers on the waterfront.
The Alki spent Thanksgiving in 1968 pouring water on Todd Shipyard, where a firefighter died.
"This is a part of our history. It's a part of our culture, but you can't keep it in your heart when it costs money to operate and we have better ways of doing things," Vickery said.
On Monday, the Alki is heading to an online auction, where bidding will begin at $1. That leaves cash to cover 8,000 gallons of diesel fuel.
"There's a total 16 diesel engines in the engine room," said fireboat engineer Dick Chester.
Voters approved a levy to enhance Seattle's marine firefighting program, and the aging Alki requires more staff than the newer, more technologically-advanced boats.
Alki's engineer still communicates to the wheelhouse using an old telegraph, and the boat fought her last fire on South Lake Union in the summer of 2006.
"It was the first boat to respond and pumped continuously at that fire and maneuvered for 19 hours," Chester said of the July 4 fire.
Firefighters hopes the boat is restored as a reminder of the past and not purchased for scrap. The money raised at the auction will help sustain Seattle's three other fireboats.
OMG!! My Dad was a boat builder he worked all his life at the Oakland Yacht Club and Todds Ship Yard near by.....I remember him talking about the Alki....How exciting this is....would love to see the repair log..wow this something! Would love to know who wins the auction so I can follow up on this.....
I wish I had the money to buy and restore this boat. It's a beauty!
16 engines? I'd like to see that
@Asa Most of them are on the pumps and ship's service generators.
assistant Seattle Fire Chief A.D. Vickery - is he related to Gordon Vickery, old SFD chief back in the day?
@Smartypants Yes, his son as I recall.
@corisbigmouth yeah, I was going to check out the auction tomorrow.
@MunroAlec doesn't start til Monday but it starts at 1c
" Vickery said the boat has a pumping capacity of more than 16,000 gallons,..."
That would be 16,000 gallons per minute, Elisa.
"Alki's engineer still communicates to the wheelhouse using an old telegraph,..."
The most reliable method ever devised to transfer engine orders. While it is called a "telegraph" it is nothing like the electrical device of the same name.  The engine order telegraph is a mechanical device linked by chains and cables to transfer the mechanical movement of a handle on the transmitter to a pointer on the indicator. And of course it is "old", it came with the old boat from the time it was built.
The Alki has been around 18 years longer than I have. It's a part of Seattle that I'll always remember.Â
Please let the MOHAI buy this boat! It should stay a part of Seattle's maritime history!
@yentaleh Awesome idea. I know its an auction, are they at least going to bid on it? Could they maybe convince the new owner to donate it if they (MOHAI) don't win?
@theToucan @yentaleh I would agree it would be great if MOHAI could acquire the vessel but the plain truth is that they (MOHAI) have no money for the acquisition nor for any maintenance. It just isn't feasible. Â
Now someone like Bill Gates or Paul Allen could buy the boat and then loan it to MOHAI (permanently) along with an endowment that would cover all the costs. (Hint, hint.)
@komonews Thanks for the RT! Have a wonderful weekend.
@SeattleDPD Thank YOU for sharing the photo!