Houseboat Explosion in Crystal Springs Canyon

Status
Not open for further replies.
We went by today. The boat is still anchored in the canyon. Even when you got up relatively close, you could mistake it for just another houseboat.

But if you look closely, you can see the sliding back door blown in. And one of the other back windows is out.

NPS had a boat stationed very near the houseboat. I hope someone other than the family will take it back to the marina. I can't imagine being the one to do that.

Terribly sad situation. Thoughts and prayers to the individuals involved. It's amazing how quickly a great vacation can turn to tragedy.
 
Accidents that are called freak, are always the result of at least two things going wrong. At the least there could have been multiple problems here. Bad maintenance resulting in a raw fuel leak and failure on the part of the person in charge to assure that the compartment was in fact properly vented before starting the generator (training) or bad maintenance that resulted in a loose hose clamp. In any case, there are no freak accidents beyond those outside human control like lightning strikes. This accident will undoubtedly be found to be due to a human failure somewhere along the way. Not just the person hitting the gen-start button. Terrible thing for the owners group to have to deal with, but not as terrible of the "family friend" and her friends and family.

Ditto on the diesel comment. I'm all diesel now on my boat. Gasoline is something we deal with every day and pay no mind too. But, when it fumes and ignites, it is a bomb, even a cup full turned to vapor in a closed space can kill dramatically.
 
Fourth party feedback here, zero confirmation of fact or not. A friend is camping one canyon over right now and heard the explosion, they did not think much of it as fireworks had been going off all night, but they said the explosion was different, muffled and deeper, unlike all other pops that night. They learned of the event the next day when many phone calls started coming in checking on them after the news picked up on the story with limited details, no boat name, etc. They drove around and found the boat the next day and claimed it looked normal from a distance and you had to get pretty close to see damage to the windows, but they also saw something else, and they claim they saw about 5 red gas jugs lined up on the back of the boat, this is 100% hearsay 4th party so it may or may or may not be. But the lesson is the same, red gas jugs on boats is a bad bad thing, especially if stored in the Sun and near ignition sources.

Been there, done that, I know years ago, back in the day when I had a cruiser, I would line the swim deck with about 45 gallons of red gas jugs to extend my range. I released pressure on the jugs many times each day and left the engine hatch open after refueling. I had a lot of fear with those portable gas cans. The new style nozzles are a complete joke spill So much gas trying to compress the spring than the old style open feed tubes.

Regardless of cause, a very very sad event.
 
Couldn't agree more on the completely useless EPA forced new style gas cans.

You can buy the yellow vent caps and old style nozzles on the internet, drill your own hole for the vent cap and convert them back to a style that works
 
Short Answer - Start at my hypothetical and totally made-up accident board report:
Long Answer - Keep reading:

I agree with the need to be resourceful and creative out on the lake. That being said, I have seen some real, 'head scratcher' repairs. At best these are things that make ya go huh? And at worst, they're outright dangerous attempts by absolutely cluedo people. You have got to know your limitations otherwise although you are wading in the shallow end of the gene pool you will still surely drown. Think Macgyver's dumber brother drunk and on acid. More than a whole thread's worth of examples could ensue but I'll give only one. Transferring fuel from/to containers without proper grounding is courting danger. There's a reason you take the can out of your vehicle and place it on a grounded surface before introducing gasoline to the situation. Somehow out on a boat people usually just place it or stand on the ungrounded carpet. While uneventful most of the time a single static spark can ruin your whole day.

As for this accident in question, the investigation will probably show operator error as the cause. It's possible there is some one-in-a-million "freak" accident involved but to rephrase Ockham's razor; 'When you see hoof prints, think horses, not zebras.'

Engines don't just explode except for maybe a AA fueler partway through the quarter mile. Most accidents are a chain of events. So here are the steps in the 'Accident Chain' from what I can surmise:
  1. The generator hold was saturated with an explosive fuel-air mixture from a fuel leak or a portable can of gas that was knocked over spilling atop the hold, or possibly some, as of yet, undetermined cause.
  2. The generator hold was not ventilated sufficiently, if at all. This is one of the most common errors I've seen from novices all the way through the very experienced on houseboats or any pleasure boat. Another huge error is thinking the ventilation can be stopped once the engine or generator gets started.
  3. The generator hold was certainly not visually inspected by opening the compartment. I would make book on that, sight unseen. A 'remote start' genny is convenient but, walking back, opening the hatch, looking and sniffing is 99.9% guaranteed to be safe. Remote start can be mostly safe...your choice.
The accident report whose purpose should be, not in finding fault but rather, in prevented similar accidents from happening will probably mostly write itself:
Hypothetical Accident Board said:
Conclusions
  • Explosive amount of fuel vapor present in generator hold due to [fill in the blank]. - Cause
  • Operator failed to follow establish safe start procedures failing to ensure generator hold was safely ventilated prior to start attempt - Cause
Recommendations:
  • Always follow established start and safety procedures for safely starting any enclosed generator or engine.
  • Run the blower (if equipped) for at least the minimum recommended time prior to start.
  • Open and physically inspect the generator/engine hold which is extremely effective. Your olfactory sense will alert you sooner than your sense of vision will.
  • Be aware of and satisfy the continuing ventilation requirements of a running generator or engine. At cruise speed most vessels have vents to perform this task. At slow speed or with a good tailwind the process can be nullified requiring intervention with a blower or open hatch which is seen frequently on your 'go fast' boats loitering around the marina.
Click to expand...
FWIW,
Goblin
 
Last edited:
We were absolutely paranoid about venting. Friends boat blew up from a hose leak into the hold back in the 70's... after that we always, always vented well before starting the engine.... on the houseboats we rented with generators they stressed venting the hold before starting the generator - even remotely - and stressed keeping the back door closed when running the generator due to fumes.

That said what caught my eye was the fact they had evidently had problems with this generator and it had very recently been serviced. This piece of information simply cannot be discounted and hopefully it won't be while some want to immediately blame the operators, it well could be related to whatever problem they had been having and was supposedly fixed with that generator.
 
Waterbaby said:
...That said what caught my eye was the fact they had evidently had problems with this generator and it had very recently been serviced. This piece of information simply cannot be discounted and hopefully it won't be while some want to immediately blame the operators, it well could be related to whatever problem they had been having and was supposedly fixed with that generator.
Click to expand...
WB I agree with you. An accident is usually a chain of events and the first link may very well have been improper or careless servicing of the generator. If true, lives were put at risk. The last chance to break the accident chain most probably occurred just prior to the attempted start.

Side story: I once went to a Honda dealer's expert service department to inquire about any problem towing a particular Honda vehicle as I was planning to tow it cross country. I was instructed by the Honda dealer's service department to just remove the front axles and that would prevent any damage from occurring. At home upon close inspection I concluded that the wheels could actually work themselves off (i.e., fall off) if either axle was removed. I went back to the dealer and another expert mechanic confirmed my conclusion. If I had towed the vehicle a wheel or two would have come off over time. We can argue as to who would be at fault but there is little doubt that I was the link in the chain that prevented the accident.

I just wanted to perhaps help someone prevent an accident. Lawyer's can handle the tragic aftermath.

Goblin
 
Last edited:
Goblin said:
WB I agree with you. An accident is usually a chain of events and the first link may very well have been improper or careless servicing of the generator. If true lives were put at risk. The last chance to break the accident change most probably occurred just prior to the attempted start.

Side story: I once went to a Honda dealer's expert service department to inquire about any problem towing a particular Honda vehicle as I was planning to tow it cross country. I was instructed by the Honda dealer's service department to just remove the front axles and that would prevent any damage from occurring. At home upon close inspection I concluded that the wheels could actually work themselves off (i.e., fall off) if either axle was removed. I went back to the dealer and another expert mechanic confirmed my conclusion. If I had towed the vehicle a wheel or two would have come off over time. We can argue as to who would be at fault but there is little doubt that I was the link in the chain that prevented the accident.

I just wanted to perhaps help someone prevent an accident. Lawyer's can handle the tragic aftermath.

Goblin
Click to expand...


I don't want to sound like I was criticizing you, I wasn't. It is simply the fact this was serviced very recent to this particular trip that has piqued my interest - were I an investigator. None of us were there to know the exact circumstances and as we know from the fireman who died last summer working on his houseboat generator on the lake they never come back after the fact and give the public the details on their accident investigations.

It took years and years for the fact there was a carbon monoxide issue with the houseboats on this, and other, lakes because the facts kept getting shoved under the covers - likely because it was an expensive retrofit and we know how THAT goes!!! It finally took two brothers dying way up the San Juan one very stormy monsoon night for this to make national enough headlines they could no longer discount what was going on and demand the changes be made... but this is the second summer now of a generator-related death on the lake and that interests me a lot more than placing blame on the victims.. more concern to me is what exactly was the cause of the other case and this case and how can it be prevented in the future as there is a lot of people who rent boats on the lake and have no clue about the importance of things like venting the engine/generator compartments. The guy who walked us through the boat at Antelope Point did an excellent job of stressing generator operation on the boat, but at State Line it was nothing more than a here is the generator and here is the remote button for it and oh, yes, vent the generator compartment.
 
We just got off the lake this morning at Bullfrog. First we learned of this accident was this morning when the next owners came on the houseboat. We were up Escalante arm all week never even knew this happened. I was about to post my trip report about the most amazing trip I've ever put together but after hearing about this tragedy I'm nauseous and sick about it. Still driving back to Denver I will have to let all of this sink in and we'll be following this closely for the cause of the accident. But sounds like gas leak associated with the generator under the deck of the boat, fumes, ignition source. Our gas westerbeke sits on the top of the back of our houseboat and now I'm glad it resides there even though it is noisy. Our toy tank pump and hose are back there a couple feet from the generator and I don't think I've ever used them with a generator on but now I definitely won't. In fact I might just switch off all the electrical on my boat while I do any gas pumping back there just like they make you do at the fueling stations. Come to think of it when I filled up at bullfrog because Halls was closed yesterday they had managers on the deck watching everything very closely I thought that was peculiar cuz I've never seen that before. But after the accident that I didn't know about at the time I'm sure everybody at marina is looking out. So heartbreaking.
 
Spoke with spoke with NPS tonight. He said the fire marshal has concluded his investigation.

Improper or inadequate venting of the hold.

There were not any portable fuel cans when we went by the boat. And the NPS ranger said "cans had nothing to do with it".
 
A rental houseboat exploded last week on Lake Cumberland. Three people injured, one of the boat passengers received burns over 51% of his body. two others are in serious to critical condition. In this case marina/rental mechanics were "working on something" at the back of the boat when it exploded, interesting this was also at the back of the boat.
 
Waterbaby said:
A rental houseboat exploded last week on Lake Cumberland. Three people injured, one of the boat passengers received burns over 51% of his body. two others are in serious to critical condition. In this case marina/rental mechanics were "working on something" at the back of the boat when it exploded, interesting this was also at the back of the boat.
Click to expand...
I took a look at the Cumberland accident and found this posting, supposedly from a reliable source but secondhand nonetheless:
MarineAssist @ LakeCumberland.com said:
Houseboat ran out of gas in the generator tank while moored out in Difficulty Creek. Techs from Beaver came and delivered two of the rolling "gas caddy" type tanks full of gas. Probably 50 -70 gallons. Generator would not restart, Techs removed flame arrestor and tried to prime generator with gas to get running. Fumes were noted in bilge. Person at helm asked to turn on blower. As soon as switch was turned on a huge fireball erupted. 3 severely burned and jumped into water. Small fire afterward in bilge put out by renter. Back of rental scorched, service boat sent adrift, renter's personal boat scorched to the point graphics peeled, etc. Outboard powered houseboat with inboard mounted genset.

2 techs and one renter onlooker lucky to be alive.
Click to expand...
 
Goblin said:
I took a look at the Cumberland accident and found this posting, supposedly from a reliable source but secondhand nonetheless:
Click to expand...


IT sounded so similar to the accident on Lake Powell a week ago - strange both happened on different lakes at about the same time. Seems to me the poster here who commented his generator was above deck has the right idea....... It certainly gives me pause. I do remember how Antelope Point could not stress enough venting the hold before starting the generator..... and more than once we've seen boats explode when the blower is turned on and a spark catches the fumes in the hold and there she goes.... We had the Halon system on our boat and made sure we kept it in good working order because we were both so paranoid about this subject.
 
First let me say that I have no idea what caused the tragedy in Crystal Springs Canyon, and feel terrible about what happened. Furthermore I have no idea what make or model their generator was or how it was installed and serviced.
I do wonder if it could have been a Westerbeke COSafe model. The previous houseboat we were on had a 10Sbeg Westerbeke and it always had problems restarting in hot conditions. It was a problem on those models and Westerbeke put several retrofit packages that attempted to cool the fuel prior to the fuel pump so that it would not vaporize (causing vapor lock). There is a schrader (sp) valve right at the entrance point to the throttle body that is intended to be an access point for a test pressure gauge, but it can be tempting to use it to "purge" the vaporized fuel from the line. I am a little ashamed to admit it but I did this a few times on our unit, and while ours was installed in a well vented compartment above deck, it was still very dangerous.
We tried dozens of remedies like increasing the size of the fuel lines, different routing, adding a second fuel pump, and while some of those helped a little, we still would occasionally not be able to start it in hot conditions. The only reliable solution was to pour water over the fuel line and fuel pump.
 
Randy Helzer said:
First let me say that I have no idea what caused the tragedy in Crystal Springs Canyon, and feel terrible about what happened. Furthermore I have no idea what make or model their generator was or how it was installed and serviced.
I do wonder if it could have been a Westerbeke COSafe model. The previous houseboat we were on had a 10Sbeg Westerbeke and it always had problems restarting in hot conditions. It was a problem on those models and Westerbeke put several retrofit packages that attempted to cool the fuel prior to the fuel pump so that it would not vaporize (causing vapor lock). There is a schrader (sp) valve right at the entrance point to the throttle body that is intended to be an access point for a test pressure gauge, but it can be tempting to use it to "purge" the vaporized fuel from the line. I am a little ashamed to admit it but I did this a few times on our unit, and while ours was installed in a well vented compartment above deck, it was still very dangerous.
We tried dozens of remedies like increasing the size of the fuel lines, different routing, adding a second fuel pump, and while some of those helped a little, we still would occasionally not be able to start it in hot conditions. The only reliable solution was to pour water over the fuel line and fuel pump.
Click to expand...
I have been thinking about this as well, and what you are speculating does make sense.

The report I heard was that the woman who died was the one trying to start the generator. Which doesn't really compute to me as I assume it was a remote start. It seems that if you had the hatch up to start it actually on the generator itself, you would have smelled the fumes. Your speculation regarding the schrader valve would make more sense. I could understand someone being in the hole, opening the valve, and then attempting to start the generator. Very sad.
 
Waterbaby said:
..... We had the Halon system on our boat and made sure we kept it in good working order because we were both so paranoid about this subject.
Click to expand...

Isn't a halon system for fire suppression? Would it help with a potential explosion from improper ventilation?

I saw no evidence of fire on this houseboat.
 
The halon system should trigger when it senses the heat from the fire. Unfortunately in this case, the explosion had already happened.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top