Rollin’ on the Rivers With Pittsburgh’s New Rescue Boat

On May 12, 2021, Pittsburgh Public Safety announced a welcome addition to its River Rescue Unit with the launch of a new paramedic and police rescue boat.

With 264 calls for service on the region’s rivers in 2020, River Rescue’s lifesaving reach will expand even further with the new boat’s state-of-the-art capabilities.

“The advanced technology the newest of the city’s River Rescue craft provides will give police officers and EMS personnel the best chance of helping anyone who experiences an emergency on our three rivers,” said former Public Safety Director Wendell Hissrich of the new vessel. “Special thanks to [former] Mayor [Bill] Peduto, council, the city’s equipment-leasing authority, and the dedicated group of police officers and paramedic/divers for their work over the past 18 months to make this day a reality.”

Manufactured by Lake Assault in Superior, Wisconsin, the new boat will become the primary rescue vessel for River Rescue, in addition to the SeaArk boat currently in service.

It’s equipped with two V8 Yamaha 425 outboard motors, as well as several new or enhanced features such as increased fire-­suppression capabilities, improved lighting, a windlass anchor, docking assist for intricate maneuvering, and built-in sonar for more accurate searches on the water.

Inside the cabin forward- and backward-trained cameras allow the operator to be more aware of what is happening on the deck and around the boat while navigating on the water.

EMS Division Chief Richard Linn, operations chief for Pittsburgh River Rescue, says the new craft was constructed with the specific safety needs of the city and first responders in mind.

“Pittsburgh River Rescue is composed of men and women from the Bureau of Emergency Medical Services and the Bureau of Police who have received extensive training to keep everyone safe on our three rivers,” he says. “This boat was designed by these professionals.”

Other key features include a bow gate that can be lowered to allow for more accessible shoreline work, such as loading and unloading equipment or personnel, and improved built-in FLIR (forward-looking infrared) for full night vision. The boat’s catamaran hull also provides more stability on the water.

“Our three rivers are one of the defining assets of the city of Pittsburgh. We are proud of our River Rescue team that brings together experts from the EMS and police bureaus to ensure safety on our rivers is a priority. This team have been leaders throughout the state in setting standards for river safety and rescue, and now they have a state-of-the-art boat equipped with the latest technologies to respond to all emergencies,” said Peduto. 

Sidebar: About the New Boat

Pittsburgh River Rescue is an EMS-based public-safety dive team located in downtown Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The team’s newest vessel is No. 5224—a unique, custom-built landing craft constructed by Lake Assault Boats of Superior, WI and placed into service in May 2021. The vessel is 31 feet long, has an 11-foot beam and catamaran-style hull, and is powered by twin 425-hp, 5.6-L V8 Yamaha XTO Offshore outboard motors, making it one of the fastest boats in the area. 

The vessel’s hydraulic bow gate and shallow draft allow it to easily access all areas of the rivers and shoreline to facilitate rapid rescue and recovery of victims in the water and on land. The team’s search and rescue capabilities are aided by the latest technology, including Garmin electronics, sonar, a FLIR thermal camera system, a long-range acoustic device (LRAD), all-around LED lighting, and a Yamaha Helm Master joystick steering system. 

Additional equipment includes an integrated fire pump with forward and stern discharges as well as automatic starting, an automatic anchor system, onboard generator, heated windows, onboard refrigerator, towline spool with crucifix tow post, davit, and dive doors on both the port and starboard sides. The vessel’s large open bow provides a stable platform to deploy and tend divers, attend to patients, and move equipment. Around the bow there are a variety of watertight cabinets where extra SCUBA tanks, weight belts, throwable PFDs, throw bags, and Aquacom underwater communications systems are stored. A floating Stokes basket is secured in a bracket on the roof. 

The full-width pilot house is climate-controlled and has seating for the pilot and crew, as well as 4 complete public-safety SCUBA diving setups with Zeagle 911 buoyancy compensator devices and Aqualung Legend regulators. All team members are issued custom-fitted Ursuit drysuits and Interspiro AGA full face masks with integral communications. A full complement of advanced life support medical gear, including a Zoll X-series cardiac monitor, is also stored in compartments in the cabin. This craft and her sister ships in the Pittsburgh River Rescue fleet are among the only ALS-licensed watercrafts in the commonwealth of Pennsylvania. 

Sidebar: Pittsburgh River Rescue

While many might not consider Pittsburgh a waterborne community, the city sits at the confluence of the Allegheny, Monongahela, and Ohio rivers. The rivers flow through the heart of downtown, and there is a burgeoning postindustrial renaissance on their shores. The port of Pittsburgh is in fact the second-busiest inland port in the nation, and a large volume of both commercial and recreational vessels transit the waterways year-round. 

There are 446 bridges in the city of Pittsburgh, 3 more than in Venice, Italy, and many of them span the waterways. The city’s iconic NFL football stadium, Heinz Field, as well as PNC Park, home of Major League Baseball’s Pirates, sit on the north shore of the Allegheny River, and a bustling entertainment district has developed around them along the waterfront. 

The large volume of commercial traffic and recreational vessels on the water in addition to the bridges and activity on the waterfront creates substantial public-safety needs on the water. Pittsburgh River Rescue, established in 1984 in partnership with the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission and United States Coast Guard, meets that need and responds to all emergencies on the water. 

The unit is staffed 24 hours a day, 365 days a year with at least 2 paramedic divers and 1 or more Pittsburgh police officers. It is prepared to respond to any emergency in the area and provide surface and subsurface rescue and recovery as well as ALS medical care and law enforcement. The EMS divers are responsible for all rescue, recovery, and emergency medical operations. The police officers are tasked with operating the vessels and any law enforcement needs on the water. The new craft was designed to meet the unique needs of the community by a committee of divers, operators, and administrators. The vessel is fast, nimble, and provides a ready platform for all-hazards emergency response. 

Simon Taxel, BA, NRP, is a crew chief and public safety diver with the Pittsburgh Bureau of EMS and a contributing author to multiple EMS platforms.