Dubai reveals firefighting 'shark' to tackle boat blazes

The Shark has been in use for four months but was showcased on Thursday during UAE Innovation Month

A remote-controlled, fire-fighting speedboat is the latest high-tech addition to Dubai Civil Defence’s fleet of life-saving technology.

Named The Shark, the bright yellow speedboat was officially revealed on Thursday – the last day of UAE Innovation Month – but has been in operation for four months.

The 10-metre boat can be remotely controlled from a ground station, using an online map, to quickly reach a vessel on fire and keeps firefighters from potential harm.

Equipped with thermal imaging and night vision cameras, the boat also automatically records any information it picks up about the fire for use in investigations.

Cameras affixed to the boat provide the officer in the control room a direct and live broadcast of the situation.

The boat's fire extinguishing system shoots out 1900 litres of water per minute. The amount of water, pressure and its direction are all adjustable from the control room.

With a maximum speed of 74kph, the Shark is expected to reduce response times to fires at sea.

It is not the first fire-fighting vessel to be unveiled by Civil Defence. In 2017, 'The Dolphin' - a jetski equipped with a jetpack attachment - was revealed in a promotional video.

The video showed a firefighter racing on board a jetski to extinguish a car fire on a bridge. A firefighter wearing a jetpack connected to the jetski then emerges from the water carrying an extinguishing hose and puts out the blaze. The Dolphin was designed to buy valuable time for firefighters on land to reach the blaze and tackle it in full force.

Dubai Municipality also previously launched a sea rescue drone to help save people that get into difficulty while swimming. The unmanned aerial vehicle called the “flying rescuer” flies over struggling swimmers and drops life buoys. The drone even has its own mini helipad.