Fire Boat ‘Bud’: New firefighting tool added to Clear Lake arsenal

[caption id="attachment_11141" align="alignleft" width="270"] Helen Meyers is comforted by her daughter, Diane Holt, after she christened Clear Lake’s new fire boat, dedicated to former assistant fire chief Frankie “Bud” Meyers.-Reporter photo by Chris Barragy.[/caption]

Hundreds cheered Thursday, as the new Clear Lake Fire Department fire boat was christened and launched on the lake.

Mark and Diane Holt were identified as the generous donors who provided $275,000 for the boat and brass pole at the Clear Lake Fire Station.  The Holts were on hand for a brief social gathering and blessing of the boat at the station prior to seeing the boat ceremoniously launched on the lake.

“How wonderful this is for the Clear Lake Fire Department and the City of Clear Lake. This would not have happened without them,” said Fire Chief Doug Meyers.  “We so appreciate Mark and Diane Holt’s extreme generosity.”

The boat was named “Bud,” in honor of longtime Clear Lake firefighter Frankie “Bud” Meyers, father of Diane Holt and Chief Doug Meyers.  Bud Meyers served as assistant fire chief from 1974 until his retirement from the department in 1993.  He passed away in April 2013.

Bud’s widow, Helen Meyers, helped to christen the boat.  And although the act was emotional for her, she flashed a large smile as the launch was celebrated and was among the first to ride on the boat.

The specialized and custom 26-foot fire service boat was built at the Lake Assault Boats facility in Superior, Wis.  It is complete with bow doors, a high-capacity fire pump, high-performance power, a multi-

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tude of electronics, and a quick plane hull to reduce response times.  The vessel was designed to ensure crew safety and help citizens in various conditions and a variety of calls on the water and for additional fire suppression needs of some homes without an easy water source near the lake.  It can pump 1,000 gallons of water per minute and has side-scanning sonar and a night vision camera.

  CLFD Public Information Officer Billy Krefft explained the $19,000 balance of the CLFD’s brass pole project was allocated to combine with additional monies that made that project possible and an incredibly generous donation of $256,000 was contributed for the fire boat, trailer, specialized training and on board equipment.

Members of the CLFD were involved in training throughout the weekend on lake, learning how to navigate and operate the fire boat.

The boat is now situated on a covered lift near the Main Street boat ramp.

  “Mark and Diane Holt both feel that the sacrifice our volunteers make and the needs of our community were well worth the gift,” said Chief Meyers.

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