http://www.wsoctv.com/news/10702922/detail.html
CORNELIUS, N.C. -- Fire investigators are going through debris, surrounded by melted plastic, trying to determine what sparked a blaze that damaged eight boats at a marina on Lake Norman.
At this point they do not know if the fire was accidental or the result of arson.
The fire, which started around 6 a.m. Tuesday at the Kings Point Marina, burned three boats and partially sank two. The others suffered smoke and heat damage.
“(It’s) a crispy critter. The whole side of the boat is friend and wrinkled up,†said Regina Huray, whose brand-new 27-foot cruiser was one of the vessels damaged.
Firefighters from Cornelius and Gilead responded. They said high winds cause the flames to spread quickly, and the fire was difficult to fight because of the amount of fuel on the boats. At least one was a power boat, which could have 150 gallons onboard.
The fire was also hard to fight because crews had to lay long lines of hoses from the nearest fire hydrant. Cornelius Assistant Fire Chief Kevin Fox said it’s just one more reason why Cornelius city leaders should buy a boat built to take down fires along the shoreline.
“Had we had a fire boat on scene, we could have gotten water on the fire quickly and maybe prevented some of the damage,†he said.
While the fire did not spread to any buildings and no one was injured, the damage did move beyond the charred boats. Environmental concerns spread as oil and fuel leaked into Lake Norman.
Booms have trapped most of the contaminants and the cleanup continues.
CORNELIUS, N.C. -- Fire investigators are going through debris, surrounded by melted plastic, trying to determine what sparked a blaze that damaged eight boats at a marina on Lake Norman.
At this point they do not know if the fire was accidental or the result of arson.
The fire, which started around 6 a.m. Tuesday at the Kings Point Marina, burned three boats and partially sank two. The others suffered smoke and heat damage.
“(It’s) a crispy critter. The whole side of the boat is friend and wrinkled up,†said Regina Huray, whose brand-new 27-foot cruiser was one of the vessels damaged.
Firefighters from Cornelius and Gilead responded. They said high winds cause the flames to spread quickly, and the fire was difficult to fight because of the amount of fuel on the boats. At least one was a power boat, which could have 150 gallons onboard.
The fire was also hard to fight because crews had to lay long lines of hoses from the nearest fire hydrant. Cornelius Assistant Fire Chief Kevin Fox said it’s just one more reason why Cornelius city leaders should buy a boat built to take down fires along the shoreline.
“Had we had a fire boat on scene, we could have gotten water on the fire quickly and maybe prevented some of the damage,†he said.
While the fire did not spread to any buildings and no one was injured, the damage did move beyond the charred boats. Environmental concerns spread as oil and fuel leaked into Lake Norman.
Booms have trapped most of the contaminants and the cleanup continues.
