Cause of marina fire still under review

by Meg Olson

Two large power boats in the Point Roberts Marina burned to the water line and sank on New Year’s Day.

“The first person I know of saw the fire at 5:30 a.m. and they were both blazing,” said assistant marina manager Monica Robins.

Pacific Mako, a 48-foot pilothouse Angel and Allura, a 55-foot high star were moored side by side on H dock and investigators now believe a shore power failure on Pacific Mako set off the blaze. “Exactly what failed is not certain,” said county fire marshal Warner Webb. “It’s currently all in the hands of electrical engineers.”

The local fire department was called out just before 6 a.m. but only five volunteers and former fire chief Nick Kiniski responded, leading to a request for mutual aid from the Delta fire department which sent down an engine with five firefighters and a captain. “There was definitely a manpower issue,” Webb said. While it is unlikely more firefighters could have fit safely on the dock Webb said the lack of personnel meant less relief for firefighters who battled the blaze in the face of a bitter wind and slippery conditions as water from hoses froze underfoot. “It was definitely a challenging situation,” Webb said. “They did a very good job for the resources they had.”

With the two boats fully engaged firefighters concentrated on protecting neighboring crafts, moving one boat out of harm’s way. By 9 a.m. Pacific Mako and Allura went down within five-minutes of each other, effectively ending the fire and starting another problem ­ what to do about 900 gallons of fuel and engine oil now under water in badly damaged tanks.

Ballard Diving and Salvage was called at 10 a.m. and had a crew on the Point by 2 p.m. setting booms around the area to contain pollutants. “Of course the weather had to turn really nasty on us,” said company owner Rick Benson. It took the salvage company seven days to contain and collect the spill, stabilize the wrecks, lift them and transport them to Bellingham for investigators. “They were both severely damaged and quite fragile. The fiberglass had sort of melted over everything and was holding it in,” Benson said. In addition to the wrecks themselves Benson said his company recovered 874 gallons out of a potential 900 on board the two vessels and transported it off the Point in a container-load of 29 steel drums. The cost of the salvage operation has not been finalized.

Webb said investigators and insurance companies are now sifting out the cost of the fire ­ from lost property to salvage costs. “We started at $1 million but the value of the two boats that sank could be that much,” Webb said. “Fourteen other boats were damaged.” He added there was also minor damage to the dock. “By the time we’re done this will be about $2-4 million.”

There were no injuries as a result of the fire. “Happily no one was hurt,” Robins said. “There was one family staying on board on H dock and they hopped in their dinghy and rowed to another dock.” A new arrival at the marina, Robins said she was impressed with marina staff’s quick action to determine no one was on the boats. “The staff knew the boat owners well enough they could check for their cars,” she said.

Webb especially reserved praise for Kiniski, who is no longer an employee following the decision of fire commissioners to sever ties with North Whatcom Fire and Rescue Services and not retain Kiniski as chief. “He didn’t have to show up. I don’t want to say he’s a hero but that was a really nice thing to do,” Webb said. “Politics aside, this is when people shine.”

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