(Above) The repurposed fireboat Fred A. Busse (pronounced BUS-ee) passes Marina City and AMA Plaza on a tour of the Chicago River. (Click on images to view larger versions.)
For nearly half a century, the fireboat Fred A. Busse responded to emergencies and rescue operations on Chicago waterways as CFD Engine 41. Today, the retired firefighter navigates the same waterways, giving guided tours of the Chicago River and sunset cruises along the Lake Michigan shoreline.
4-Oct-20 Sightseeing boat tours consistently rank as one of Chicagos most popular attractions by visitors and locals alike. A new vessel has joined the fleet of choices an authentic 1930s fireboat owned and operated by Chicago Fireboat Tours.
We give our guests a glimpse of what it was like to be a firefighter stationed on the boat in 1937, says co-captain and co-owner Raymond Novak.
The fire engine red Fred A. Busse, named for a former mayor of Chicago, was the worlds largest diesel-powered fireboat when built. It was designed to fit underneath the citys many bridges to minimize response times. With four water pumps, it was rated for a combined 10,000 gallons per minute and could spray water up to 27 stories high.
The fireboat and its crews supplied water to some of the biggest fires in the city. Among them was the McCormick Place convention center inferno on a bitterly cold January night in 1967. The fireboat was retired in 1981.
A new chapter in Chicagos maritime history
Chicago Fireboat Tours was launched by two friends and United States Navy veterans. Novak and Erich Totsch had worked together and individually on various vessels in Chicago but dreamed of captaining their own.
In 2018, Novak was browsing boat sales on the internet and came across the Fred A. Busse. It was located in the resort area of Door County, Wisconsin, where it had been converted into an excursion boat. The Busse was just what the two aquaphiles were looking for.
This boat is part of Chicagos history with the fire department and with maritime history in general, co-captain Totsch says. Bringing it back to its home port in Chicago is pretty special. |
Over the next several months, the duo researched the history of the fireboat and worked out their business plan. They also underwent an extensive financing process aided by the Veterans Business Project, a matchmaking organization between veteran entrepreneurs and lenders.
Chicago Fireboat Tours embarked on its first cruise on July 6, 2019.
A likely partnership
Novak and Totsch served in the Navy at different times and in different roles, but their experiences and long-term deployments at sea prepared them well for partnering in a cruise company. Novak tends to the engineering side of things, and Totsch leans toward the business side. But they both can do everything, even filling in for an absent docent or tending the refreshment bar.
In the Navy, youre trained in your department, but youre also trained to work outside your department, too, Novak says. We both know each others jobs on the boat. Im Mr. Fixit, but he can help me. Hes the topsider. If he needs something, Im there too.
Were pretty even, but even Ray would say I dont get my hands dirty as much as he does, Totsch says with a chuckle. |
At sea, everyone at every level is trained in firefighting as there is no fire department to call.
This year, due to the pandemic, cruise season did not start until June 23. The end date is weather-dependent but could be as late as mid-November. After two summers, Chicago Fireboat Tours hasnt yet operated for a full season, but the red retro-styled vessel stands out as a floating museum.
Were a history tour, Totsch says. Our tours tell the story of… |
Read More: Cruise along Chicago waterways on a historic fireboat