Fire destroys boats; explosion sparks blaze at Topock marina

[Havasuvian]

By Gary Weiand
Sunday, August 1, 2004 10:01 PM MDT
An explosion and the resulting fire destroyed at least nine boats and damaged several others at Topock Gorge Marina late Sunday morning. No one was reported injured as fire crews from several area agencies combined to prevent the blaze from spreading.
Bob Kemp, Mohave Valley Fire Department division chief, said that around 11 a.m. one boat exploded near the dock and burst into flames. The fire quickly spread among vessels moored at the facility located about 16 miles north of Lake Havasu City on Topock Marsh. At least nine were destroyed and five more damaged. An unknown number of boats sank, so the number lost may grow, he said.
Debra McCollum, bartender at the marina's restaurant-lounge, said that she witnessed the start of the blaze. Two people were in a boat that had been launched but not started, she said.
"The people tried to start it, and the hood on the engine blew 10 feet in the air. They dove off, it blew up and then it drifted to other boats at the dock," she said. "Within 10 seconds three were burning, and two more caught while I was on the phone.
"Two people were in the boat, but they jumped out. No one was hurt," she said.
Shawn Lawless, firefighter/paramedic for the Golden Shores Fire Department, said that he was with the first crewman to arrive at the blaze.
"The dock was in flames, and all but about three boats there had already been consumed," he said. "The flames were only 10 to 15 feet high, but there was lots of smoke."
According to Kemp, the fire was confined to one dock and contained by noon. He said that six fire engines and two fireboats arrived to prevent the blaze from spreading to other docks or the shoreline vegetation. The Golden Shores Fire Department, the Mohave Valley Fire Department, San Bernardino County, and other state and federal agencies responded to the fire, he said.
Trish Carter, Mohave County Sheriff's Department media specialist, said that the department assisted with traffic control and helped evacuate Topock Gorge Marina.

[LHC30Victory]

OK, so how many of us have NOT USED OUR BLOWER to vent the eng compartment prior to starting the boat?
Sounds like this guy failed to to just that. :eek!: :eek!:
I bet he will remember now!:cry:

[Kilrtoy]

Dont use it,
I just open the hatch instead clears it right out.....

[riverbound]

I dont use my blower much, I usually open the engine coverand check everything first. My boat is also open where the carb and air cleaner poke through. I also start the boat when launching with the cover open so I can listen for any new strange noises.

[cola]

I should use mine more. Fuel injection is not the same as the old days with carbs. I could not imagine the deck lid of my boat 10' in the air like what happened this time.
Late, Mike
http://www.***boat.com/image_center/data/520/1268boatfire06.jpg

[jbtrailerjim]

Originally posted by LHC30Victory
OK, so how many of us have NOT USED OUR BLOWER to vent the eng compartment prior to starting the boat?
Sounds like this guy failed to to just that. :eek!: :eek!:
I bet he will remember now!:cry:
I always use mine.
Hope he has insurance, cuz he's definitely gonna need it.

[carreraelite]

18 boats damaged in marina fire
02:53 PM Mountain Standard Time on Monday, August 2, 2004
Staff and wire report
Major damage has been caused by a boat fire at a Colorado River marina in northwestern Arizona Sunday.
Mohave County sheriff's office spokeswoman Trish Carter says a 21-foot jet boat exploded into flames as the engine was started at the Topock Gorge Marina yesterday morning.
The News-Herald reports that according to a Mohave Valley Fire Department division chief, the fire was contained by noon.
Seventeen other boats, as well as the dock, also caught fire.
Carter says many of the boats either sank or are unsalvageable.
Fortunately, no one was injured.

[Rexone]

Simply opening the hatch isn't adequate if there's little circulation (wind). Fuel fumes will hang in the bottom of the bilge even with hatch open. One spark, still kaboom. :(

[Kilrtoy]

Originally posted by Rexone
Simply opening the hatch isn't adequate if there's little circulation (wind). Fuel fumes will hang in the bottom of the bilge even with hatch open. One spark, still kaboom. :(
AHHHHH
That is good to know, I will use both now....

[little rowe boat]

Gasoline vapor is heavier than air and will seek the lowest areas of the engine compartment, so if you don't use your blower to remove these vapors they will continue to accumulate until they reach there lower explosive limits.

[RiverPirate]

We went by today on the way home and looked. The pictures don't really show how bad it looked. It sure seemed like it was more than nine boats in that parking lot. It also looked like it could have been a lot worse.

[RiverPirate]

another pix

[RiverPirate]

another...

[RiverPirate]

The last.....

[SHAKE-YO-AZZ]

not a good day

[ACCEPTENCE]

Just got home from working the Topock incident.
Pic's to follow.
18 boats totaly destroyed (3 fiberglass & 15 pontoons), 7 totaly sunk & 11 burned down to the water line.
About a 32 hour completion time but all boats are out of the marina and off the bottom.
While the pictures will show the carnage, this incident could have been considerably worse. No loss of life and that's a good thing!!!
I will say this: "I have never seen this much distruction consentrated in such a small area"
The most difficult part of the entire operation was seeing the vessel owners emotions when they saw the remains of what once was a boat. That part sucked the worse!!!

[Havasuvian]

Officials: A total of 16 boats destroyed in fire at Topock marina
By Gary Weiand
Monday, August 2, 2004 10:24 PM MDT
Officials said Monday that a total of 16 boats were destroyed in a fire at the Topock Gorge Marina.
According to Havasu National Wildlife Refuge Officer Matt Sherrell, Sunday's fire could have been worse if it had spread to the shoreline or if the fuel and oil spills had not been contained.
Sherrell said that all but two of the 18 boats involved were destroyed. The blaze began when the rear end of a boat exploded as it was being started, he said. The ensuing fire destroyed most of the marina's easternmost docking area and partly burned the pier of the neighboring docking area. The explosion is under investigation but the boat total is final, he said.
"We've accounted for all of them," Sherrell said. "Seven were underwater, nine could be towed, and two had only minor damage."
Sherrell said that firefighters prevented the flames from reaching the other docks. He said that after the fire was contained, the issue became hazardous materials - gas and oil - in the water, where they could catch fire, or drift into the Refuge.
He said that although the marina is private land, the danger to the Refuge caused the federal Wildland Fire Department to handle the cleanup. By 4 p.m. Sunday, a private company out of Needles had laid fuel and oil containment buoys at the end of the marina channel, and later a fuel containment crew came in from Las Vegas, Sherrell said. He said that they cleaned up the area before the boats were raised.
"They mopped it off," Sherrell said. "We wanted it sealed off before we raised the sunken boats."
Sherrell said that he knew of no visible environmental damage. The flames did not spread to the shoreline, and it appeared that the oil and gas did not spread beyond the marina.
"We were lucky. No one died or was seriously injured, and the fire was so hot it burned up much of the fuel. We will know if there was environmental damage in the future, but for now we know we contained it," he said.
Sherrell said that an investigation is underway to determine the cause of the explosion, which occurred when the boater attempted to start the engine.
You may contact the reporter at gweiand@havasunews.com