Fireboat Alexander Grantham Exhibition Gallery
By admin on 2015-01-19

The fireboat Alexander Grantham (葛量洪號) was a fire boat for the Fire Services Department (Hong Kong). The fireboat was named after former British colonial Governor Sir Alexander Grantham. It went into service in 1953. Before being decommissioned in 2002, it served as the flagship of the Hong Kong Fire Services Department's fireboat team, responding to fire alarms and conducting rescue operations both in Hong Kong's waters and along the shoreline. It was built by Hong Kong & Whampoa Dock Co. Ltd. and, as well as an enduring witness to the history of Hong Kong's sea rescue services, it is also a testament to the achievements of Hong Kong shipbuilding in the 1950s. The boat has since retired from service and been replaced by other vessels.

Given the profound historical significance of the Alexander Grantham, the Hong Kong Museum of History acquired the fireboat for its collections, refitting it and opening it to the public in the purpose-built Fireboat Alexander Grantham Exhibition Gallery 葛量洪号灭火轮展览馆. On 10 March 2006, the fireboat was successfully hoisted into its new permanent home in the Central Concourse of Quarry Bay Park, Hong Kong, where it has been converted into the Fireboat Alexander Grantham Exhibition Gallery and was opened to the public as a museum in 2007. In addition to the fireboat itself, the Gallery houses a number of multimedia exhibits on the vessel's history and on firefighting in Hong Kong.Showcasing a number of unique firefighting artifacts, the gallery offers a wealth of information displayed in multimedia formats to enhance the visitors' understanding of marine rescue work in Hong Kong.