PORT TOWNSEND — An explosion aboard a 56-foot commercial fishing vessel docked in Boat Haven on Monday morning shook local windows and rattled walls but caused no injuries or damages to the adjacent boats— which included the Coast Guard cutter Osprey.
“I was in the front of the boat and started up my generator, and the next thing I knew I had a big explosion” at the rear of the boat, said Bill Hammer, the owner of the Silver Lady.
“I was afraid my son was on the boat, but it turned out he was just on his way.”
The cause of the big boom heard over much of Port Townsend a little after 8 a.m. was under investigation by the Coast Guard on Monday.
East Jefferson Fire-Rescue investigators believe the explosion was caused by gas buildup but were unable to determine the source of the gas.
Hammer had told East Jefferson Fire-Rescue spokesman Bill Beezley that he was topping off his gel batteries with a generator, and when he turned the electrical switch on, he heard the blast.
Hammer grabbed a fire extinguisher and headed below the deck, but when he saw no flames, he got off the boat.
Coast Guard personnel had already called 9-1-1, and emergency services were notified at 8:16 a.m., Beezley said.
The vessel was docked approximately 45 feet from the 87-foot Osprey, with an open slip between the two vessels.
Forceful explosion
Coast Guard Master Chief Chad Curth told Beezley that he was sitting in his office facing both ships when the explosion occurred.
“I looked up just in time to see the windows of my office bow in from the force of the explosion,” he said.
Curth, who is the Coast Guard officer in charge of the Port Townsend station, divided the crew from the Osprey into two groups.
One group pulled a water pump from the Osprey and took it over to Silver Lady in case there was a fire.
The other group was directed to walk C-dock and evacuate people from other vessels.
Although there were no signs of a hull breach of Silver Lady, local Coast Guard personnel deployed a water boom around the boat as a precaution.
Firefighters found smoke billowing from the stern of the Silver Lady but no flames.
The smoke soon cleared.
Investigation
An incident investigator arrived from Coast Guard Sector Seattle at about 11:30 a.m. to determine the cause of the explosion.
The team came with a pollution team. There was no spill, Beezley said.
Firefighters who had left the scene were called back to disconnect the battery from its power source, which was necessary before the Coast Guard could board the boat.
Hammer, who has lived in Port Townsend for 25 years “and fished all my life,” said the boat was built in 1968 and has made several trips to Alaska.
“I’m glad that this didn’t happen when we were out fishing,” he said.
“If I had been on the deck during the explosion, I wouldn’t be here now, I’d be in the hospital.”
Hammer said that he is not due to take another excursion for three months.
Repairs needed
He said the boat will need extensive repairs.
The force of the below-decks explosion blew a solid aluminum hatch above the main deck into shrapnel, which sprayed the boat, Beezley said.
Other machinery on board suffered damage as well, with debris littered throughout the main deck area.
Hammer told Beezley he had acetylene tanks and oxygen tanks below decks, near where the batteries were stored.
“All the equipment in the back of the boat will probably need to be replaced,” he said.
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Jefferson County Reporter Charlie Bermant can be reached at 360-385-2335 or at charlie.bermant@peninsuladailynews.com.