Crews called to boat blaze in Wells Harbour

A boat in Wells-next-the-Sea was engulfed in flames on the evening of 15 October, causing plumes of smoke and flames visible for miles around.

RNLI Wells inshore lifeboat was paged by HM Coastguard at 6.54pm to assist a vessel which was ablaze in Wells Harbour.

The volunteer crew of four joined the Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service, who were already on scene and who had ascertained that there were no people on board the vessel.

With further agencies arriving, including the Police and Coastguard, the Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service took the lead.

The decision was made to put out the fire instead of leaving it to burn out. The tide was ebbing and the moored boat was now on sand.

By using the lifeboat, the RNLI volunteer crew supported the Fire Service by transporting fire equipment and firefighters across the channel to the vicinity of the burning boat. The inshore lifeboat crew also assisted on foot to feed a hose from the fire pump across the channel to the blazing vessel, which the firefighters used to put out the flames with foam fed through it.

Once the Fire Service was satisfied that the fire was completely extinguished, Wells inshore lifeboat crew helped to bring the equipment back across the channel, which was now approaching low tide.

At 10.48pm the Wells RNLI crew were stood down. The cause of the fire is not known.