November 3, 2025
Flame wars, water wars
2,400 HP FDNY Super Pumper could extinguish hell itself
Commenters lose it over NYC’s 2,400HP fire beast
TLDR: FDNY’s Mack Super Pumper used a 2,400HP Napier Deltic engine to blast massive fires with astonishing water flow and reach. Commenters turned it into a “pump wars” showdown, pitting it against Space Shuttle turbopumps and jet-powered tanks while debating whether pumps can handle super-hot, nasty fluids—engineering power with meme energy.
A vintage legend just crash-rolled into today’s internet: FDNY’s Mack Super Pumper, a 2,400-horsepower, WWII warship-engine-on-wheels that once hurled water 600 feet and slurped 10,000 gallons per minute to knock down Gotham’s worst blazes. Old-school fans are misty-eyed about “Black Saturday” and say the city’s $875K was the best money ever spent—while others fixate on the beast’s Napier Deltic engine (three crankshafts, two-stroke roar) like it’s automotive Pokémon. One user dropped the Napier Deltic link, and the comments erupted into horsepower flexes, nostalgia, and gleeful chaos.
The drama: a full-on pump-off. Space nerds swaggered in with the Shuttle’s turbopump boasting 23,000HP (Space Shuttle main engine), instantly turning the thread into “whose pump would win?” Meanwhile, a wildcard brought the Big Wind—a tank with twin jet engines—into the ring, complete with a Car and Driver link, and the meme machine went turbo. Practical folks chimed in with “can this pump molten metal?” questions, prompting a mini masterclass on how hot, corrosive fluids need specialized gear. Verdict from the crowd: the Super Pumper is equal parts mad science and urban hero, and the internet will never pass up a chance to compare everything to rockets, tanks, and dragons.
Key Points
- •A severe 1963 Staten Island fire during a drought exposed FDNY’s water supply and equipment limitations.
- •FDNY commissioned the Mack Super Pumper System: a five-vehicle brigade led by a central high-capacity pumping unit.
- •The system operated from 1965 to the early 1980s, responding to over 2,200 calls and involving 900+ firefighters.
- •The pumping unit delivered 10,000+ GPM at low pressure and 8,800 GPM at 350 psi, powering a 600+ ft water cannon.
- •Power came from a 2,400-hp Napier Deltic opposed-piston diesel; Mack built the system after winning a 1964 contract, costing $875,000.