Boat fire in our marina

[Moonfish]

This past Wednesday morning is one my wife and I will never forget:

https://48north.com/news/theres-a-fire-in-the-marina/

Spoiler alert - all's well that ends well...

 

[Comodave]

And to think that a lot of marinas don’t want liveaboards...

 

[w8n4sun]

Scary. Nice job helping out and glad to hear no one was hurt.

 

[BrentwoodBayliner]

Wow - scary stuff! Do they have any idea of the cause? With no-one on board (?) I'm assuming electrical? The fire location looks right about where a panel might be.. Please follow up if you get further info. Thx.

 

[firehoser75]

Yes, live aboards are a bad idea. Just like with dirt homes, it is best to leave them obviously vacant for long periods, with no one around. That never creates issues, and truly vacant houses never catch on fire. Extremely facetious smile with tongue firmly in cheek
Well done! Controlling the fire spread while it was still safe to do so, moving away possible exposures limiting possible spread, all while keeping a firm eye on personal safety, great response! I am sure the FD was appreciative for all of the help making their job both easier but more importantly safer as well.
I really do not understand the fact that so many marinas don't allow at least limited live aboards, with rules of course to reduce possible pollution concerns.
Again, well done and glad it had as "happy" an ending as possible.

 

[rslifkin]

Definitely sounds like a good save and well coordinated response by everyone around! Hopefully you'll hear what the cause was at some point.

 

[psneeld]

I wouldn't bet the ranch that all liveaboards are up to the task of firefighting or moving boats safely. But certainly raising the alarm and doing almost anything minimal may have large positives in the end.


I had a marina manager that was convinced it was better to keep control of the boat on fire by a thin and burning through anchor line than let me,the local assistance tower get it out of the marina in a matter of minutes.


He said he learned that in a marina managers education seminar. Yes the anchor line burned through in about 2 minutes outside the marina.


So even training can be an iffy contribution in emergencies.


And yes the local fire department didn't show up with foam in their fire boat so after I sent them back for some...and kept water on the boat for another 1/2 hour.....they got back with the foam and had the fire out in minutes.


Experience and training comes in real handy....but yes early warning and minimal action can help too a lot of the time.

 

[ssobol]

Seems like there should be fire alarm pulls placed around a marina that sounds a audible fire alarm that can be heard by people in the area (esp. live-aboards) and summons the local FD. Sort of like what you find in buildings (obnoxious alarms, flashing lights, FD has to turn up to reset the alarm). Put a pull on each (or every other) power pole.

 

[Moonfish]

Seems like there should be fire alarm pulls placed around a marina that sounds a audible fire alarm that can be heard by people in the area (esp. live-aboards) and summons the local FD. Sort of like what you find in buildings (obnoxious alarms, flashing lights, FD has to turn up to reset the alarm). Put a pull on each (or every other) power pole.

That's actually a very good idea!

 

[Art]

Excellent liveaboards' response time and actions. Hurts me to see a Tolly in distress!

 

[Comodave]

Seems like there should be fire alarm pulls placed around a marina that sounds a audible fire alarm that can be heard by people in the area (esp. live-aboards) and summons the local FD. Sort of like what you find in buildings (obnoxious alarms, flashing lights, FD has to turn up to reset the alarm). Put a pull on each (or every other) power pole.

This is an excellent idea!

 

[rslifkin]

Seems like there should be fire alarm pulls placed around a marina that sounds a audible fire alarm that can be heard by people in the area (esp. live-aboards) and summons the local FD. Sort of like what you find in buildings (obnoxious alarms, flashing lights, FD has to turn up to reset the alarm). Put a pull on each (or every other) power pole.

I also agree that this is a good idea. Much more useful than the handful of fire extinguishers typically placed around a marina.

Along those same lines, making sure dock water mains can feed at least 2 - 3 hoses at full flow on the same section of dock would be good. A couple people with hoses can at least buy some time for the surrounding boats while they get moved.

 

[Bacchus]

Seems like there should be fire alarm pulls placed around a marina that sounds a audible fire alarm that can be heard by people in the area (esp. live-aboards) and summons the local FD. Sort of like what you find in buildings (obnoxious alarms, flashing lights, FD has to turn up to reset the alarm). Put a pull on each (or every other) power pole.

Our marina was recently refurbished and the new fire extinguisher/ life ring pedestals are alarmed so removal of any of these emergency items sets off a marina alarm. A nice safety feature that also discourages malicious activities.
I am not sure if it ties into any FD alerts?

 

[Moonfish]

Along those same lines, making sure dock water mains can feed at least 2 - 3 hoses at full flow on the same section of dock would be good. A couple people with hoses can at least buy some time for the surrounding boats while they get moved.

Yes, that was an issue. The very first thing I did was grab another hose to get more water on the flames. But when I turned it on, it effectively lowered the pressure to the first hose. Made it so both hoses had a hard time reaching the flames. Shut it off within 10 seconds to allow the one stream of water to reach.

 

[firehoser75]

Just a comment on the alarm system idea. I think it is a good idea. However, be aware that under such an alarm, due to monitoring costs, the alarm like are in many existing buildings is for "local alarm" only, and unless someone calls, does not notify the FD (unless the Marina owner decided to pay for 24/7 monitoring).

It is a bit of a mixed bag, some buildings are monitored by a private company (Like ADT for example), while others are just local. Most Fire Departments do not provide alarm monitoring themselves (directly). Even for a building (or location) that is monitored, call the FD anyway if the alarm sounds and provide any additional eyes on scene to them that you can.

 

[bobbyp]

Just a comment on the alarm system idea. I think it is a good idea. However, be aware that under such an alarm, due to monitoring costs, the alarm like are in many existing buildings is for "local alarm" only, and unless someone calls, does not notify the FD (unless the Marina owner decided to pay for 24/7 monitoring).

It is a bit of a mixed bag, some buildings are monitored by a private company (Like ADT for example), while others are just local. Most Fire Departments do not provide alarm monitoring themselves (directly). Even for a building (or location) that is monitored, call the FD anyway if the alarm sounds and provide any additional eyes on scene to them that you can.

Around here, commercial buildings (including residential over 3(?) units) are required to be professionally monitored AND have at least 2 methods of communication to the central station. Used to be 2 separate phone lines, now a cellular line and an internet connection.
Wouldn't be bad if that were a requirement for marinas though then people would be complaining about their rates going up a couple percent to cover installation, monitoring, quarterly inspections,etc.

 

[ssobol]

Around here, commercial buildings (including residential over 3(?) units) are required to be professionally monitored AND have at least 2 methods of communication to the central station. Used to be 2 separate phone lines, now a cellular line and an internet connection.
Wouldn't be bad if that were a requirement for marinas though then people would be complaining about their rates going up a couple percent to cover installation, monitoring, quarterly inspections,etc.

On the other hand, maybe their insurance premiums would go down a bit if their boat was kept in an alarmed and/or monitored marina.

 

[bobbyp]

On the other hand, maybe their insurance premiums would go down a bit if their boat was kept in an alarmed and/or monitored marina.

You sir are quite the optimist.

 

[bshillam]

I have my boat at a marina that uses a fire pump to charge a line with an endless supply of river water. It's a solid system that can pump thousands of gallons in minutes. There are fire extinguishers everywhere, fire buckets, and the fire pumps at each section of the marina. We also have a yearly fire training too for full timers.

 

[psneeld]

Plain water on a glass boat fire is usually not effective unless in the hands of prod and their equipment.

Pouring water on adjacent boats and docks can help though.

 

[Ruffryder]

Shore power cord as usual.

 

[Moonfish]

Shore power cord as usual.

That's the first guess most people make, especially considering the proximity of the boat side inlet just inches forward of where the flames were coming out of the engine room vents.

But the first guy on the scene is the lead systems instructor at the NW School of Wooden Boat Building, and his opinion is that it was NOT the shore power cord that caused the fire. He literally boarded the boat (that's how it was discovered that it was thoroughly locked) and when he looked at the flames from the side deck a few feet away, the inlet and power cord showed no signs of heat or arcing. That being said, it's more than likely the fire started as the result of an electrical short or something similar inside the engine room.

Of course, until the investigation is complete and we know the conclusions, it's all conjecture...

 

[Ruffryder]

Yes it was just my assumption, since that is where the shore power cord inlet is located on a Tolly 43... She appears to be a Tollycraft 43 AC.
When that shore power cord is burned up & overheated, male plug on the boat side down to the main breaker wire can overheat & cause it to burn.
I have seen it more than a few times.

 

[psneeld]

https://www.boatus.com/magazine/2015/december/causes-of-boat-fires.asp

I think BoatUS thinks most boat fires are DC in origin.

 

[78puget-trawler]

Some may remember the big fire we had at Shelter Bay Marina a few years ago. Don't remember how many boats were lost but close to a dozen I think.

 

[Moonfish]

Some may remember the big fire we had at Shelter Bay Marina a few years ago. Don't remember how many boats were lost but close to a dozen I think.

Scenes of that fire were what was specifically running through my head and why I was insisting we move the neighboring boats out of the way!

 

[ghost]

Some may remember the big fire we had at Shelter Bay Marina a few years ago. Don't remember how many boats were lost but close to a dozen I think.

Watched that one burn. Embers were going everywhere and they were not letting anyone move boats when I got there.

 

[ghost]

That's the first guess most people make, especially considering the proximity of the boat side inlet just inches forward of where the flames were coming out of the engine room vents.



But the first guy on the scene is the lead systems instructor at the NW School of Wooden Boat Building, and his opinion is that it was NOT the shore power cord that caused the fire. He literally boarded the boat (that's how it was discovered that it was thoroughly locked) and when he looked at the flames from the side deck a few feet away, the inlet and power cord showed no signs of heat or arcing. That being said, it's more than likely the fire started as the result of an electrical short or something similar inside the engine room.



Of course, until the investigation is complete and we know the conclusions, it's all conjecture...

The shore power on the outside is still yellow, not really burned in the picture. However just aft of the cable entry is where the flames are. At that spot on the inside is just below floor level, and it is where the pigtails from the power are routed on the inside before they enter the main panel. Just a couple feet aft is the main fuel tanks. Scary location. By the nature of all the panel wiring entering from below in that area, it could be ac or dc wiring.

Anybody immediately on scene would not have gotten a look at that area, you have to be in the engine room and craning your neck over to get a look at it and that’s when it’s not on fire and full of smoke.

 

[Mako]

Plain water on a glass boat fire is usually not effective unless in the hands of prod and their equipment.

I recall from my fire fighting training in Broward, the instructor telling us that although water is not the the preferred extinguishing agent for electrical and hydrocarbon (fuel, fiberglass) fires, if nothing else is around or the fire is too big, then just hit it with HUGE amounts of water.

Certainly in your galley with a grease fire you may not want to splash a panful of water on it (and therefore spread the fire), but he was referring to extreme situations.

BTW, has anyone here experienced the pleasure of a magnesium fire? When I was younger we used to go riding every Thanksgiving in Glamis Arizona. One of us would always bring a VW engine block. When that baby burned you literally could not look at it from a mile away. Crazy!

 

[psneeld]

Huge amount s of water will eventually sink the boat before it completely extinguishes most boat fires (from my experience fighting or witnessing dozens).

Not saying it's useless...it may be better used protecting surrounding boats or infrastructure though.

Untill proper equipment can be set up, not sure I have ever seen water be effective.

Magnesium in older flares and some Helo fires are bright....maybe the transmissions are high in magnesium.