Fire at Bullfrog

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We were in the north Bullfrog buoy field and could see the flames from the top of our HB (¼ mile away) From our vantage point it appeared the fire was within / under the covered slips. Second hand information this morning from people who were at the covered slips: “The houseboat was not occupied – it Exploded” without warning. Glass and debris flew everywhere”.

Someone was able to cut the boat free—the winds were from the west which pushed the burning boat east of the slips near the rubber tires – that is where it burned to its shell.

This morning I went over and found no other damaged boats but you would think that is unlikely. The shell of the HB had been dragged to the Bullfrog ramp this morning. There was nothing left. The boat appeared to be a 50’ +/- mono hull – I did not see a name

Scary stuff—but my understanding is that no one was injured---thank the powers to be ---

Have to assume a buildup of gas fumes or propane to cause an explosion – Could be numerous ignition sources –
 

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Thanks for the update. I saw the smoke from the campground by the gas station. The person who untied it should get a medal for saving the dock and the other boats. Sq
 
Hopefully more information will be forthcoming but yes they should get a medal -- From where I was all I could see was the fire but I must have been looking through the covered docks to where it was burning
 
This was after the explosion which I reported. They got it out of the slip and we’re still onboard using fire extinguishers to try to save it. A personal boat pulled it out and picked them up when they bailed
 

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Steve-- Thanks for the info as my initial post was hearsay -- Are you saying that people were on it when it first caught fire / exploded?
 
I don’t know if it was owners or people jumped
On from neighboring boats. But
Yes people
We’re on it. What upsets me is I contacted Aramark within 2 minutes and they did nothing. I couldn’t raise NPS. Ticaboo volunteers even responded
 
Yes-- the real hero / hero's where the ones that got the boat out of there -- Glad that the people who "abandoned ship" were not hurt and quickly picked up--

I couldn't hear any chatter on "16" which I thought for sure would have info during the event

Thanks for the update
 
Ryan said:
It shouldn’t be that way.......
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Playing Devils Advocate in a What If scenario: "Untrained 19 year old Aramark employee sees boat on fire, boards boat with hand held extinguisher, succumbs to smoke inhalation and dies in fire. Aramark is held liable by victims family for lack of training and sued for wrongful death." As bad as I hate to see property damage, life is far more valuable than "things", even "nice" things.
 
John P Funk said:
Playing Devils Advocate in a What If scenario: "Untrained 19 year old Aramark employee sees boat on fire, boards boat with hand held extinguisher, succumbs to smoke inhalation and dies in fire. Aramark is held liable by victims family for lack of training and sued for wrongful death." As bad as I hate to see property damage, life is far more valuable than "things", even "nice" things.
Click to expand...
I agree except for the fact they have chosen to not train their people to fight fires. I was told by an employee that they used to train for it all the time. A Coast Guard Auxillary member told me they own fire boats. They’ve just chosen to not train anyone anymore. True I wouldn’t want a temp summer kid on it but there are older permanent employees like the one I talked to who would do it
 
After consulting a buddy with the Austin fire department about this he said there is a lot of liability even if personnel are trained which is why Aramark leaves it to the park service. If they are fighting the fire and a propane tank explodes Aramark is liable for any of their people that are injuried. If they inhale the smoke and it's burning fiberglass then they will have to be monitored the rest of their lives. If the dock burns down while they fight a fire then their insurance company can say you aren't covered because you could have removed the boat from the slip. There is so much that can go wrong it's not worth it to them or to risk their personnel. He said he would have done the same thing.

I noticed they changed their policies after the fire at Hall's which after talking to my buddy I'm convinced their insurance company made them change their policies and they realized that their people weren't properly equipped to fight fires. You need turn outs and SCBA's plus the up keep for that equipment. I also doubt anyone that works there will fight fire for what they are paid, they would want more money which they should be entitled to since they are working in a hazardous situations.

Save lives and other property, get the burning boat away from the slips and then the park service can try to extinguish the fire otherwise it can safely burn.
 
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