A boat owner was working on the wiring of his boat Sunday when he inadvertently caused a spark and triggered an explosion, Capital City Fire/Rescue Fire Marshal Dan Jager said Monday.
The owner, according to a statement from Jager, suffered minor injuries but declined medical treatment. The damage was estimated at $100,000, the statement said, and the building was insured but the tenant space was not.
At about 5:41 p.m. Sunday, the owner of a boat condominium complex on Brandy Lane in the Mendenhall Valley called CCFR to report a fire. Emergency personnel, including CCFR Assistant Chief Ed Quinto, arrived on the scene shortly afterward.
When they arrived, Quinto said, the owner looked like he was preparing to re-enter the burning unit. Quinto said they stopped him from going back in.
Quinto said it was difficult to enter the unit initially because there was ignited gas on the condo floor that was leaking out of the building. They had to use water and foam, Quinto said, to battle the fire back. Quinto said it still only took about 10 minutes to knock the fire down.
Responders went into the adjacent units, Quinto said, to check for any damage that might have happened there. He said there was a little smoke in the building, but there was no fire damage to any other units.
Quinto said the boat was a 20-foot aluminum boat. Jager said via email Monday that the fire began in the boat as the owner was working on it. The owner caused a spark when he was working on the wiring, Jager said, which caused the explosion and the fire.
There are a few takeaways from the scenario, Quinto said. It’s important, Quinto said, to stay aware of one’s surroundings, to not re-enter a burning building and to have capable fire extinguishers.
“Make sure you have a large fire extinguisher,” Quinto said. “He had a small one, a two-pounder. That wasn’t enough. You need at least a 10-pounder if you’re going to be working around electricity and fuel.”
• Contact reporter Alex McCarthy at 523-2271 or amccarthy@juneauempire.com. Follow him on Twitter at @akmccarthy.
Capital City Fire/Rescue firefighters respond to a fire at a boat condominium on Brandy Lane on May 6, 2018. (Capital City Fire/Rescue | Courtesy Photo)
