Boat Saved by Neighbors
Call reported smoke and flames
seen on boat in harbor.
January 25, 2010
Monday
Ketchikan, Alaska - The Ketchikan Fire Department responded to
a report of a boat fire on float 8 Bar Harbor, behind Bar Harbor
Restaurant on Saturday. The commercial fishing vessel "Sable"
had heavy smoke venting from the open cabin door and also from
a starboard window on the rear of the cabin. The City of Ketchikan
Harbor Master, bystanders, and other neighboring boat owners
used dry chemical extinguishers and a garden hose to control
the fire before KFD personnel arrived. The fire department responded
to the call at 3:52 PM.
Electrical shore power
supply wiring behind the stove appears to have burned through
the wire insulation.
Photograph courtesy Ketchikan Fire Department
According to information provided by Ketchikan Fire Department
Chief Jim Hill, cause of the fire was electrical shore power
supply wiring behind the stove appears to have burned through
the wire insulation. Fire vented up through a 4-inch diameter
hole in the shelf above the wiring and melted a plexiglas window.
The boat owner, Tom Carruth,
stated he had just been down to the boat earlier in the day to
plug in a heat lamp in the foc'sle area while he already had
a small portable heater turned on under the galley table said
Hill. Hill said both the heat lamp and heater were found not
to be involved as a heat source contributing to the cause of
the fire however the additional electrical load on the shore
power connector may have caused overheating of the electrical
wiring on the vessel side of shore power connection.
Commercial fishing
vessel "Sable"
Photograph courtesy Ketchikan Fire Department
The approximate value of his boat is $100,000. Estimated damage
to vessel is $10,000 said Hill. Damage to vessel is limited primarily
to smoke damage to the cabin area interior, some charring behind
oil stove, melted plexiglas window, as well as radios and other
electronics said Hill.
Responding vehicles included
Engine-2, Engine-1, Rescue-1, Fire/Boat Harry Newell (standby),
FD1, and Medic-1.
Along with Ketchikan Fire Department,
Ketchikan Police Department, and Harbor Master, the United States
Coast Guard small boat station responded with the 47' response
vessel to assist.
A total of 14 Ketchikan Fire
Department firefighters and support personnel responded to the
call. No injuries were reported said Chief Hill.
Source of News & Photographs:
Ketchikan Fire Department
E-mail your news &
photos to editor@sitnews.us
Publish A Letter in SitNews Read Letters/Opinions
Contact the Editor
SitNews
©2010
Stories In The News
Ketchikan, Alaska
|