It was all hands on deck after a freight train traveling from Tucson to Phoenix derailed along a bridge in Tempe Wednesday morning.
The bridge partially collapsed and about 90 firefighters from across the Valley took to the scene, including some from the Peoria Fire-Medical Department. Fire Boat 199 was requested from Regional Automactic-Aid partners in Tempe to help put out the three-alarm fire at Tempe Town Lake.
The boat normally serves Peoria’s Station 199 at Lake Pleasant Regional Park, which is about 56 miles away from the area serviced for the train derailment.
Officials said the department sent a five-person rescue swimmer boat operator firefighting crew from the Tempe Town Lake side, and had a three-person command staff to assist with the overall operations as the unified command team in Tempe directed.
Fire officials said Peoria Fire Medical Rescue Swimmer crews are cross trained in standard fire suppression tactics, open water fire suppression tactics, water rescue, wild land, hazmat first responders, and emergency medical responses from EMT to paramedic for both water and standard EMS calls.
