Rescuers Tow Burning Boat to Shore After Anglers Jump Ship
By John-Henry Doucette, The Virginian-Pilot, Norfolk, Va.
Jul. 18–VIRGINIA BEACH
A 19-foot boat caught fire Tuesday near the Lesner Bridge, sending thick smoke into the sky and forcing two would-be anglers into the water.
They were aided by crews from the Virginia Pilot Association and Cape Henry Launch Service as well as the city police Marine Patrol Unit.
Jack Thornton, captain of the Cape Henry Express, said one of his crewmen and several Coast Guardsmen aboard his private craft helped get the two boaters out of the water. No injuries were reported.
The men said they were on their way to fish when the fire broke out.
Mike McArthur, a 55-year-old truck driver from Williamsburg, and Nelson Hodges, a 66-year-old retired state transportation worker from Middlesex, met at church. They were “a little exhausted” after their ordeal, Hodges said Tuesday afternoon.
“It’s my first time going out fishing with him,” he said.
“Probably his last time,” McArthur noted as he prepared to drive off with his empty boat trailer.
“No,” Hodges said, laughing. “We just want an outboard motor.”
The boat that burned had an inboard one. The cause of the fire was thought to be a spark from a motor problem, Battalion Chief Laurie Gurley said.
The folks aboard the Cape Henry Express tried to get a tow line on the burning boat after it drifted under the bridge. That effort ended when, Thornton said, “it kind of blew up a little bit.”
The city fireboat eventually towed the burning craft ashore, where firefighters got the flames under control.
Battalion Chief Dave Hutcheson said the fire was reported at about 11:45 a.m. and brought under control shortly after noon. In the early afternoon, the burned hulk of the craft lay on a sandy beach near a marina.
John Doucette, (757) 446-2793, john.doucette@pilotonline.com
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Copyright (c) 2007, The Virginian-Pilot, Norfolk, Va.
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