(Disclaimer: The content in this video is intended for educational and informational purposes only)
Just after 4:20 p.m. 911 dispatchers received multiple calls reporting the fire in the 2100 block of Westlake Avenue North. SPD Harbor Unit team members learned about the destruction firsthand – they heard an explosion themselves. Officers at the Harbor Unit station, located on Lake Union, not only heard the explosion, but they saw smoke rising from the nearby marina. Harbor Unit officers grabbed their gear, including firefighting equipment, and drove a department boat towards the blaze. When they arrived, they found a 34-foot Tollycraft boat engulfed in flames, with parts of the marina roof also on fire.

Harbor officers quickly used a handline hose connected to the vessel’s deck pump, drawing water from Lake Union, to attack the flames. They worked alongside Seattle Fire Department crews to contain the blaze.

Officers continued suppressing the fire until SFD personnel took over. Together, the two agencies kept the fire from spreading beyond the involved boat and the immediate roof structure above and adjacent to it.

According to the investigation, before the fire, witnesses heard a loud blast and went to the boat and verified no one was aboard. Witnesses attempted to put out the fire but realized it was too large and started getting nearby boats out of the marina.

The owner of the boat that was destroyed responded to the marina and told investigators he hadn’t been having any issues with the vessel. He said he did have a propane tank and a battery aboard, but had no explanation for the explosion.

The boat was a total loss and later sank due to fire damage.