By Mary-Justine Lanyon
Editor
Taking a page from the film Forrest Gump – where Forrest is told it’s bad luck to have a boat without a name – San Bernardino County Fire recently held a naming campaign for its fireboat on Lake Arrowhead.
The winning name was unveiled on Saturday, Oct. 11.
According to Battalion Chief Jerren Grundy, 182 names were submitted. Those were narrowed down to the top 25 and then to the top three: Arrowhead Guardian, Mountain Mariner and Smoke on the Water.
After a vote by mountain residents, Smoke on the Water won out with nearly 50 percent of the vote.
Serge Duzian with his son, Zain, and his father, Serge Sr., with “Smoke on the Water.”
The name was submitted by lifelong mountain resident Serge Duzian, who was at the unveiling with his son, 4-year-old Zain, and his father, Serge Sr.
“The song (by Deep Purple) just popped into my head,” Duzian said. “I thought it was a good play on words – fire creates smoke and they fight fire on the water.”
The fireboat – Boat 92 – is staffed with a crew from Fire Station 92 and is available for calls on Lake Arrowhead 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
Chief Grundy noted that the boat is equipped with a fire pump – that delivers 1,000 gallons a minute – for fire suppression on the water as well as any on the shore. It has state-of-the-art GPS and sonar to aid in providing advanced life support and water rescue.
Crews who man Boat 92 are required to obtain the California boater’s card and then take a one-week boat operation course at Lake Havasu, where they are trained on boat operations on the lake as well as the Colorado River.
Duzian – who is an EMT in Victorville and plans to go to paramedic school in January – is looking forward to going for a ride on the boat he named.
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