Electricity suspected in fire that burned boat

A boat moored near Bay Island was consumed by flames Tuesday afternoon, but according to authorities, friendly winds kept the fire from spreading any farther.

The Orange County Sheriff’s Harbor Patrol rushed to a 3:15 p.m. call of a fire at Edgewater Avenue and Coronado Street, Lt. Erin Giudice said. Within three minutes, two fire boats and a patrol boat were fighting the blaze, which was confined to a single boat.

“The wind was blowing in a good direction,” Giudice said. “It blew away from the other boats. Had the wind been blowing the other way, it could have engulfed other vessels.”

No one was hurt, and the vessel was unoccupied at the time, authorities said. A cause was not known for the blaze, but Giudice said it was likely something electrical.

— Michael Alexander