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San Francisco’s floating fire station opens

Fireboat Station No. 35’s unusual structure is designed to withstand earthquakes and changing sea levels

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Fireboat Station No. 35 is the first floating firehouse in the western hemisphere, according to the San Francisco Fire Department.

Photo/SFGovTV

By Leila Merrill

SAN FRANCISCO — Fireboat Station No. 35, the first floating firehouse in the western hemisphere, according to the San Francisco Fire Department, officially opened Thursday, KCO reported.

It is located behind the original Station 35, which was built in 1915 along the city’s Embarcadero.

The floating station is a two-story 14,900-square-foot building at Pier 22½. It is designed to endure earthquakes and changing sea levels. The station has a lift for three fireboats.

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Fireboat Station No. 35 is the first floating firehouse in the western hemisphere, according to the San Francisco Fire Department.

Photo/SFGovTV

Mayor London Breed, other city officials and community members celebrated the completion of Fireboat Station No. 35 at an event Thursday.


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The floating fire station: A look at SFFD's first-of-its-kind Fireboat Station No. 35

Just north of San Francisco’s Bay Bridge, the new Fireboat Station No. 35 will serve the city with its three fireboats and rescue watercraft