Deluge, Historic fireboat at Mississippi River, New Orleans, United States.

Deluge is a fireboat built in 1923 by Johnson Drydock & Shipbuilding Co. of New Orleans, also described as a firefighting tug. She carries pumps, fire monitors and hoses for fighting fires on vessels and docks, and was retired in 1992.

The vessel was constructed in 1923 by a local shipbuilder and became essential to the port's fire response for decades. It received National Historic Landmark designation in 1989 due to its significance in maritime firefighting history.

The Deluge's name was also the call sign used by the New Orleans fireboat crews, and the vessel carried out towing jobs and cleared silt from docks and boats after fires. It rescued drifting barges and returned them to the docks, work that kept the river commerce moving between major blazes.

Deluge was retired in 1992 and by 2000 was no longer operational, needing hundreds of thousands of dollars in repairs; her National Historic Landmark designation was withdrawn in 2023 after reliable information on her condition was lacking, though she remains on the National Register of Historic Places. Check current access before planning a visit.

The Deluge's most famous call came on Christmas Eve 1950, when the crude oil barge Sans Souci collided with the tanker Baltimore, spilling oil that ignited and made the river appear to be on fire. The fireboat's pumps ended the threat. The vessel was retired in 1992 and lost its National Historic Landmark status in 2023.