Boat Fire on the Nehalem Picture

[SKP]

A co-worker went fishing on the Nehalem on Saturday, July 26. She doesn't know the story, except it caught fire at the launch, so the boaters pushed it out. Does anyone have any more details? Here's a picture she took.

http://www.ifish.net/uploads/514010211.jpg

[Hooker]

They probably didn't turn on the blower before starting up. Gas fumes most likely blew up.Heard of a few of these incidents this summer.

[Small Fry]

This should be a public safety service announcement.

This boat used to belong to one of our own here at Ifish. In fact he had it for sale here on Ifish.

He sold the boat and the new owners put a lot of work into it prior to their first trip.

Hooker nailed it right on the head( forgot to turn blower on) . I will let the former owner add the rest of the story. He also has more pics.

[CATCH AND EAT]

Man that bites. The blower is a good practice. ACtually opening the engine compartment for a minute or two before launch is not a bad idea either. sure sorry for the loss. Pretty scary stuff.

[Miss B Haven]

Actually- Electrical shorts are THE leading cause of boat fires. Way ahead of gas fumes. Check your main power wiring often for loose connection and corrosion!

[fishonksm]

I was there that morning and saw the unfortunate incident. It happened about 7:30-8 am just after tide change. The Coast Guard was keeping an eye on the boat while it drifted in the bay out in front of Brighton Marina. The two fishermen are ok, not sure if the boat burned to the water line or not.
What is that saying about the worst day fishing? :shrug: :hoboy:

[pdxkevin]

I have never owned a boat so please excuse my ignorance....

Would pulling the plug help at all?

Aren't all boats supposed to have functioning fire extinguishers?

Since the boat can't be sunk because of its flotation foam(?), would flipping it have saved the boat at all?

[surejam]

Alright, here is the story....
As Small Fry said, this is (or was) the boat I was selling last year. My neighbor and a friend of his decided to go in together and purchase the boat from me on Tuesday. My neighbor was telling me about how I would not recognise the boat when they got done refinishing it,(they weren't kidding). They did a tune up, drained and filled the fuel tank, stained the teak wood, sanded and painted the outside, put in a new marine radio, borrowed a kicker motor, and did a few other things.
On Saturday they launched the boat and tied off to the dock. Just as my neighbors friend was putting the key in the ignition he said "Alex, make sure you turn on the blower". Alex said "it will be fine"..........
Within a second the boat was in flames. There was another boater that was docked there that tried to help with a fire extinguisher but obviously that didn't do much. The dock worker cut the line and pushed the boat out away from the dock to avoid further loss.
I talked to my neighbor yesterday and he figures there was about $4500 worth of stuff in the boat, counting the cameras, and lamiglass poles. I asked him if they insured it before they left, he said they had talked about it but never did because financially they hadn't really invested much into the boat!!!
It made me sick to see the pictures he brought me of Saturday's launch. I really hope this makes some people more aware of safety. That small step of turning on the blower for a minute could have possibly prevented this from happening, thank goodness nobody was hurt. I will post the pictures when I get them from him, and some of the boat before the fire as well.

The last quick note is a real kicker..... This poor guy can't even go home and tell his wife about the worst day fishing because she doesn't even know he bought the boat ! :hoboy:

BE SAFE OUT THERE.
Surejam

[TundraIII]

I feel sick......I dont use my blower nearly as often as I should, I will make a real habit of it now. Hopefully its just the boat and gear that was lost and not a good friendship.....major ouch. :depressed:

[ 07-31-2003, 01:24 PM: Message edited by: TundraIII ]

[Dr Strangelove]

Real simple solution - if you own a sportjet, the box weighs very little. Just pull it up on the first start of the day at the launch. No blower needed. Easy to access with extinguisher if something lights off if the cover's already up. On water restarts can use the blower or a quick pick up and sniff will do.
If fumes, start with cover up. Doc

[ 07-31-2003, 01:32 PM: Message edited by: Dr Strangelove ]

[OceanBlue]

Whenever I start the boat, whether it is the first start or a re-start it goes in this order:

1) Blower
2) Fuel pump
3) Check the gearshift and ensure neutral
4) Turn the key

EVERY time. I don't intend to be a statistic... nor do I intend to blow up the Pilar. I don't think I could ever recover from that.

[drhall99]

Ouch, bad fishing Karma. Always tell the wife. Cheaper to have her mad than be divorced.

D.

[fishonksm]

Surejam could you hold on to the rest of the story whilr i roll up my wders and reel in my line and sinker as i have soft lips and cant afford to bite very hard.

[Small Fry]

fishonksm This is no BS story.

[timinthegorge]

Not telling the wife about the purchase of the boat??? Ouch! I don't envy the boat owner....

No insurance? Strike two.....

Not following safety procedures??? Strike Three. And the picture is worth at least a thousand words.....

I feel sorry for all the work they put into the boat, but if you don't have safety, you don't have a boat that'll float.... at least for long.

Another reason to buy outboards.....

[ 07-31-2003, 04:18 PM: Message edited by: timinthegorge ]

[Conspiracy Theory]

I am new to owning a boat and didn't think much about using the blower until about a month ago. I watched a show on TV (can't remember name of it) showing a 22ft cuddy cabin blow up at the dock. It had 3 people in it. In the video it looks like one of them are either jumping or blown overboard. Thete were just starting it up. NOT PRETTY. After that I've tried real hard to remember the blower. After seeing this pic also, I hope I get it "burned" into my brain to use that blower.

[surejam]

Fishonksm, I'm not quite sure what your reply was supposed to mean. If it was in doubt of the story, that's for *you* to decide. What's not to believe?
Like I said, I'll post the pictures they brought me once I have scanned them. They are supposed to take more later.
Surejam

[husker]

place a sign next to the key switch for the starter....turn on blower 1st.... :grin:

very sad situation here..... :sick:

[ 07-31-2003, 05:42 PM: Message edited by: husker ]

[Hare's Ear]

When I was a teenager we had a Seaswirl ski boat. There as small sign engraved over the ignition that said "Run blower for 5 minutes before starting". I always thought it was kind of a hokey rule, but I ran it anyway. Now I know why.

[graybeard]

"i have soft lips and cant afford to bite very hard"

???

Dude, what the hell are you thinkin? Uh, never mind, don't think I want to know.

[MX man]

Was this an aluminum or fiberglass boat?

[DF]

Boy that looks like a surround and drown, no way to save that thing even if you got water on it

[TundraIII]

I saw a video of a boat that exploded when the owner turned the key. He had forgotten to run the blower and that doghouse lit up in a fire ball. A fire extinguisher would have been a waste of time. It was everything the guy could do just to bail out over the side.

[surejam]

MX man, it was a double fiberglass hull.

[Phil Layer]

I always wondered why they don't put the blower switch right beside the ignition switch. On my boat, it is on the other side of the dash between the wipers and the bilge pumpt switch. If it were right by the key, it would be much easier to remember.

I think I'll attach some sort of flap above my key so that every time I reach for the key, I'll be reminded to hit the blower. A sign by the switch is too easy to ignore.

[Paddlefish]

Phil,

Good idea. Great opportunity for a sensible engineer (oxymoron?) :grin: to do some idiot-proofing.

One of my old VW buses had a headlight switch which you pulled outward from the dash to turn on. When on, it was almost in contact with the ignition key. The great/simple idea was that when you turned your ignition off, your knuckles bumped into the "on" headlight switch. A great, no-tech, super-simple way to avoid leaving your lights on accidentally. :cool:

[Conspiracy Theory]

Here is an idea. Wire it so any time the key is in the "ON" position the blower runs. No switch to turn on or off.

[Phil Layer]

CT,

Problem with that is it would run all the time the boat was running. Once you've got it started and running, there's no need to continue running the blower.

[Gr8waves]

We should never try to design a system to replace common sense. Should we remove stern cleats and eyes so that people will not anchor stern first? Of course not.

Running the blower is part of the launch ritual - plug, straps, lines, safety chain check, blower on. The blower is turned on before I back the trailer into the water.

[Mr. Carp]

fishonksm, what in the heck are you trying to say?? :hoboy: Some people never will get it.


Posted by timinthegorge:
Another reason to buy outboards.....
<font size="2" face="verdana,arial,helvetica">Very true statement!!!!

I send my thought to the people who owned the boat. That is just not a good day on the water... :depressed:

[South Paw]

I'm renovating a 24' glass boat. Y'all got my attention. There will be an engraved sign right by the ignition that will remind me of this picture. Ouch

[Snapshot]

Okay, I am a work-A-Holic and always looking to help save someone along the way. I've worked insurance claims about 34 years and my contribution to this is, and worth considering by the owner of this burning infreno;

Your homeowners insurance will cover a lot of you fishing tackle for damage caused by fire. It may cover a small amount towards the boat value as well. Policies vary, some have limits as low as 1000 on boats and their equipment and some as high as 2500 for boats and their equipment. IF this was a joint owned boat, both may have a claims for your loss. The fishing tackle is not considered part of the boat or its equipment as it can be used in or out of any boat.

Break down, tell the wife about the fire and turn in your homeowners claim and reclaim all you can. You may be surprised if you have a replacement cost policy for your contents.

I offer this info as I have learned from your experiences. I have just become a blower user, everytime, no matter when.

*Fish only bite wet hooks*

[Mark Vickers]

Lesson learned...

Way too many times have I hopped in the boat and just fired it up thinking that the blower was just a waste of a few minutes for something that would never happen.

Another lesson learned on ifish. I wear my PFD all the time now when on the water because of you all.

[TideRipper]

How about this. :smile:

Replace the blower switch with a SPDT switch (2 switches in one). Wire one side of the switch to turn on the blower just as before. Wire the other side of the switch in series with the starter switch.

Results
(1) The starter wont start unless the blower is switched on first.
(2) Once the motor is running you can switch the blower off.

So simple, it's scary.

[Sore Back]

Quite often those mistakes are fatal. It never pays to not follow directions.