Fire ravages canal boat in Devizes
Posted on January 18th 2010
A canal boat moored on the Kennet and Avon Canal in Devizes had firefighters battling to extinguish the flames on Monday night. A local walking past the vessel dialled 999 after seeing flames emerging from the 42ft boat. The fire proved to be a challenge for fire crews as its location was beyond the range on any of their hoses. They were forced to make their way along icy roads and paths in order to obtain a position were they could extinguish the fire.
Police are treating the fire as arson as it is believed that no one had been living in the boat for some time and the location was unlit leaving it a prime target for arsonists.
The canal was frozen which made the job of obtaining water for the emergency services very difficult but after erecting a set of floodlights they were able to crack the ice. Using an arsenal of breathing equipment, a hose reel and a main jet, crews where able to stop the fire minimising the total damage to around 75% of the vessel.
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