Secaucus Fire Dept. Gets New Boat For Hackensack River

SECAUCUS, NJ — Check out the new boat that was just unveiled last week for the Secaucus Fire Department to patrol the Hackensack River. The boat was given to the town through a $346,410 FEMA Port Security grant, which was secured by Rep. Bill Pascrell, this area's longtime Democratic congressman.

Secaucus Mayor Mike Gonnelli, who is himself a volunteer firefighter, said in the past that the brand-new fire rescue boat will be used to combat fires along the Hackensack and Passaic rivers.

For example, there are a total of 29 bridges that crisscross the area, carrying the NJ Turnpike, Rt. 3 and many other major highways and roads over the Hackensack and Passaic rivers, and surrounding marsh land.

Should a fire occur on any of those bridges, now the Secaucus fire department can respond. This also includes the problem-plagued, 114-year old Portal Bridge, which carries Amtrak trains and NJ Transit over the Hackensack. The Portal Bridge is technically considered obsolete and trains cannot go faster than 60 mph over the decrepit bridge. There is usually a malfunction on the Portal Bridge at least once every year, grinding to a halt Amtrak and NJ Transit service in and out of New York City. Replacing the Portal Bridge is part of the federal Gateway Project, which the Trump administration refuses to provide any funding for.

The boat can also respond to boat fires, as there are an increasing number of jet skiers and recreational boaters using the Hackensack, and help with water rescues.