San Francisco's new floating fire station is 1st in western hemisphere

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- The San Francisco Fire Department will now have a new tool to deal with climate change -- a floating fire house.

It officially opened Thursday at Pier 22 1/2 on Thursday, along the Embarcadero at Harrison just south of the Ferry Building.

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It sits behind Station 35, built in 1915, which is now too small to meet the city's needs.

This is the first floating fire house in the western hemisphere, according to the fire department.

The design makes it resistant to earthquakes, king tides and rising sea levels.

The new station is also equipped with a lift for the city's three fire boats to keep up with maintenance and repairs.

Mayor London Breed joined city officials and community members on Thursday morning to celebrate the completion of Fireboat Station No. 35 at a ribbon-cutting event.

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