Campbell County, Tennessee Firefighters Contain Marina Blaze

Jan. 19--KNOXVILLE -- Campbell County Rural Fire Service personnel learned lessons when fighting a boat dock fire six months ago that prepared them to stop a fire this morning at the Whitman Hollow Boat Dock, one official said.

No injuries were reported in the fire that started shortly before 9 a.m. at the marina on Whitman Hollow Road in LaFollette, said Assistant Chief Daniel Lawson with the Campbell County Rural Fire Service.

The chief said firefighters contained the fire this morning to seven boats, and state bomb and arson personnel are investigating as a routine measure to determine the cause.

Lawson recalled how the fire six months ago engulfed Springs Dock at 1652 Alder Springs Road near LaFollette.

"Our gentlemen performed well today," he said. "We had training because of our past boat dock fire."

The Sept. 10 fire caused more than $1 million damage, destroyed 58 to 60 boats and damaged three of the marina's four covered boat docks.

Lawson said in the fire today only about a 10-foot section of walkway was destroyed and firefighters contained flames to a 75-foot section of covered slips. About seven boats were damaged, two of which sank, he said.

Lawson said that since the Springs Dock fire, the fire department has obtained portable pumps and they used those pumps to fight the fire this morning.

"We were drawing water straight out of Norris Lake," he said.

Lawson said another lesson learned from the Springs Dock fire was the importance of reducing the "fire load" or potential fuel that could burn by getting other watercraft out of the way of the flames.

The chief said firefighters went about cutting lines that held boats in their slips to prevent them from being damaged.

"We saved multiple boats due to that," he said.

A significant difference between the two fires was the time of day. Because the fire six months ago occurred early in the morning, flames had more time to spread before anyone noticed, whereas this morning firefighters were called before the fire got out of hand, the chief said.

"Upon arrival we found three or four boats on fire and we had to stretch hose 300 feet to get to the fire," he said. "It was moving toward some houseboats and toward the marina store."

Lawson said firefighters contained the fire before it reached the houseboats or the marina store.

The chief said several explosions heard during the fire were most likely fuel tanks blowing up.

Lawson said he was concerned for his personnel because the walkways on the boat dock were icy and slick and he didn't want anyone to fall on the dock into the water while wearing heavy turnout gear and oxygen tanks.

The chief thanked personnel from fire departments with the cities of LaFollette and Caryville.

More details as they develop online and in Sunday's News Sentinel.