Community News

Burning boat from Treasure Beach           This past month Treasure Beach was full of news and even battles from our walkway to the beach issue, to an elderly couple that passed away together in their home at the same time. One story that might go unchecked was a miracle. A local within Treasure Beach known as Captain Mike came close to leaving us when his large boat exploded off shore about 20miles from land. Most of us in Treasure Beach never heard about this or saw the film footage taken over the rescue to remove the five passengers. Several things come to mind over what happened that day and yet its a common danger to boaters. I inspected the damaged hull after the event last week and its shocking just how close this crew came to loosing their lives. For all who own a boat we need to check our fuel tanks and be very concerned if your boat has an aluminum fuel tank. Mike's boat is well equipped but one of his 65 gallon fuel tanks was slowly getting a tiny amount of salt water eating the aluminum thru to the fuel. This condition can take years, but one thing we all should know, is that yes, aluminum corrodes with salt water. If you have plastic tanks on board your boat, than fittings and other hose connections should be checked for your own safety. This boat had outboard engines so no one would suspect that a fire could break out inside the hull. Mike keeps this boat near Florida City and launched it last week for a great day of fishing. First mate Shawn said he thought that on his first approach to the boat he could smell gas fumes. The crew found one tank of gas was empty and that thieves must have stolen the fuel. Little did anyone suspect that 65 gallons of gas was now soaked down deep into that boats hull. I guess at this point we all need to take a quick note, if you think there is gas fumes around your boat, than check and double check everything before starting your trip. In typical mode this boat was refueled to 40 gallons and then headed to sea for a great day of fishing. Most tanks are built into the hull on larger boats so its impossible to see the entire gas tank. Fact is the fuel tanks are "foamed" into the hull and this only adds to the problem of inspecting them for salt water damage. This boat with its foam now soaked in 65 gallons of fuel was now a floating bomb just waiting to go off, all it needed was a spark. After some time speaking about the timing of the fire, it appears the spark came when the bilge pump came on as the boat was moving to another fishing area. Within seconds the hatches all blew open spitting flames and smoke into the air. Captain Mike was burned on one leg as the fire now began deep within the hull. The crew used coolers and anything they could find to splash water into the area where they believed the fire was coming from. At this point with the smoke now billowing from the hull they abandon ship fearing the boat would explode. Using the fire extinguisher and throwing water into the hull, the good news is the boat didn't explode. Captain Mike was flown directly to a local hospital for his third degree burns on his leg and the crew was rescued. The boat is now home in Treasure Beach getting plastic fuel tanks and some costly other repairs. Lucky ? I'm still shocked but happy to know we didn't loose a Treasure Beach resident to this disaster. On a funny note, with the boat now home and repairs underway, the first mate started the task of cutting the old tank from the boat, at about this time someone nearby let off a mortar rocket with July the fourth coming up, the poor fellow jumped from the boat thinking he was reliving the event in Treasure Beach once again. Lucky and home in Treasure Beach we all need to be safe boaters.   L.A. Panchuk ( Author: The Devil's Magnet ) Reporter X zone radio, IDS