The Superpumper System

[Captain784]

I had the honor of working in the Super Pumper System as a Firemen in the 1970s filling in in mostly Satellite 1. Satellite 1 was at that time quartered at the Old FDNY Medical Office on Spring Street on Manhattan's Lower West Side (Now the Location of The FDNY Museum) The firehouse was the former quarters of disbanded Engine Co. 30 and also housed the Satellite Officer, who was a Captain, and also housed a "Spare: Satellite that was in fact a 1954 Mack, formerly assigned to Engine Co. 14. Also in quarters was FDNY Dept. Ambulance 1 for the use of FDNY members only. If one of the Satellite's was out of service, the 4 1/2" Hose, the Super Pumper system used at that time, was loaded into the hose bed of the old 1954 Mack and would respond that way. I once took the 1954 Spare Mack Satellite, to a fire in Row Frames in Bushwick Brooklyn. You should have seen the double takes when members at the fire saw us show up with this old Mack with a plywood Wood Roof Installed. The 4 1/2" hose had aluminum couplings if I remember correctly. The hose was very heavy and often some poor Engine Co. or Cos. were/was assigned to help us reload the Satellite with the 4 1/2" hose after the fire. Often the satellites were assigned to respond to "Boat Boxes"
alarms that had a Marine Co./Fireboat Responding on the initial box or assigned on arrival at a working fire near one of the rivers. Almost all other areas one Satellite was assigned on the 2nd Alarm and the Super Pumper & Tender Plus Two More Satellites assigned if the fire went to a 3rd Alarm or more. After the layoff in July of 1975 the Satellites were all quarter with a designated Engine Co. Satellite 1 was quartered with my old unit Engine Co. 27 until that unit was closed, in 1975 and then Satellite 1 was quartered with Engine Co. 9 in Chinatown.
Captain Bob Rainey FDNY Engine 26 retired