SHASTA LAKE: Firefighters battle floating houseboat blaze, brush fire
SHASTA LAKE — Firefighters found themselves battling a floating houseboat fire that set a small cove ablaze before officials managed to knock down the fire Saturday, July 15. A family that had rented the houseboat managed to escape the fire unharmed; however, the rented houseboat was considered a total loss.
A houseboat was destroyed after it caught fire while refueling at Shasta Lake Saturday, July 15.
Cal Fire, U.S. Forest Service firefighters and other emergency first responders were dispatched to the fire at 11:19 a.m., after several witnesses called 911 to report the blaze. Callers told emergency dispatchers a Shasta Marina houseboat caught fire while being fueled at a refueling dock. Callers also told dispatchers a family had been offloading their personal belongings off the houseboat when it caught fire.
While battling the floating blaze, the houseboat was pushed into a cove where it started a brush fire.
Guided to the fire by following the thick, choking, black smoke pouring from the burning houseboat, Shasta County Sheriff’s Boating Safety deputies in the area quickly responded to the scene and found the houseboat fully engulfed in flames at a Shasta Marina refueling dock.
When U.S. Forest Service firefighters arrived on scene they immediately began fighting the fire from the shore.
Meanwhile, nearby Bridge Bay Resort sent a fire boat and chase boat to assist Shasta Marina and other firefighters battling the blaze from the water side.
As firefighters were working to knock down the roaring fire, the boat – which was still floating – was pushed away from the refueling dock, propelled by the force of the water being applied to the burning vessel. The boat eventually floated to a cove where a brush fire broke out along the shore.
Although firefighters managed to quickly knock down the brush fire, the houseboat fire continued unabated.
Two Cal Fire firefighting boats soon arrived on scene of the blaze and assisted other firefighters in successfully knocking down the flames.
Once firefighters brought blaze under control, the Bridge Bay chase boat pushed what was left of the houseboat to a clear space on shore where it was tied off and secured.
There were no injuries reported from the fire.
Fire officials are investigating the cause of the blaze, which burned the houseboat down to the hull. Their investigation is active and ongoing.
Firefighters from the shore and from several firefighting boats managed to knock down the blaze. There were no reported injuries related to the fire.
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Trevor Montgomery runs Riverside County News Source and Shasta County News Source. Additionally, he writes for Riverside County based newspapers, Valley News and Anza Valley Outlook and also writes for Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County.
Trevor spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg and breaking his back in an off-duty accident.
During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations, including Robert Presley Detention Center, Southwest Station in Temecula, Hemet/Valle Vista Station, Ben Clark Public Safety Training Center and Lake Elsinore Station, along with other locations.
Trevor’s assignments included Corrections, Patrol, DUI Enforcement, Boat and Personal Water-Craft based Lake Patrol, Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement, Problem Oriented Policing Team and Personnel/Background Investigations. He finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator and was a court-designated expert in child abuse and child sex-related crimes.
Trevor has been married for more than 26 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and has 13 children and 12 – soon to be 13 – grandchildren.
s a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and has 13 children and 12 – soon to be 13 – grandchildren.