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EXPLOSION ROCKS WEST END
(updated April 4th)
Sources
close to the accident, say a Delta truck parked, the driver hooked up
the hose
and started the pump to fill an underground gas tank for Delta's marina
station. He
then wandered off to go buy water to drink. Upon his return, he
noticed the connection had come loose and gasoline was
spraying a nice mist all over the hot engine exhaust in back of the
truck.
He or somebody put out the word to "run for
your life before it explodes". Someone noted that a small
fire then erupted under the tanker. (Gas +hot metal=fire starter)
A
crowd came rushing down the docks, some away from the fire, others
towards it. I was nearby at the time and wondered why this crowd of
screaming people were running from the wharf towards the Frenchman's
Cay bridge when the explosion rocked the island.
The
driver, perhaps trying to save the situation, was badly burned.
Someone who saw him loaded into the ambulance explained it in
horrendous graphic details, none of them pretty.
Destroyed
were:
The Delta Tanker
Voyage Charters' Truck
Voyage Charters' Work Room full of tools, paints,
lines, supplies etc.
A big
nice new RIB stored on a trailer (unsure of owner)
Damages
to Public restrooms and showers, nearby roofs, part of a taxi van and
one helluva of a big mess all around.
Incredibly,
the gas pumps survived without damages while the ice machine a few feet
behind them was destroyed. From the water, very few damages can be seen.
A
red cargo container, parked next to the fire, is seen with peeling
paint,
from the heat and ditto for the side exterior wall of the ladies room
which has big zit bubbles in the paint.
Incredibly,
very few plants were burned or destroyed, a few looked pretty dried up,
but still green.
One tire on the tanker merely
went flat, while another was burned down to the steel belts.
A
gate close to the tanker, was still standing, though charred, yet the
building further away (the work room) was destroyed. The
hurricane anchors stored inside, survived.
A white
plastic chair, now resembles wadded up, used chewing gum, but is still
white.
Electricity was restored to the wharf later
in the afternoon. Tourists arriving later in the afternoon
wanted to know why so many shops were closed up early, as the fire
damages are not readily visible from the harbor.
Some
employees expressed their nerves were jittery, two explosions, in under
two months, both at 11am.
Like one said to me
"Makes ya wanna be late for work, ya know?"
PREVIOUS
REPORT
At
11am on Monday, April 3rd, a huge explosion rocked West End when a full
fuel truck ignited. At least one person was seriously injured and
rushed to the hospital.
Hundreds of people appeared
in the streets, as if they had all been magically hiding in
the bushes moments before and word was quickly relayed by coconut
telegraph.
As this photographer
approached the fire, dozens of folks were seen on their cell phones
passing the news along.
Flames shot over 100 feet
up, followed by thick black billowy smoke. Winds were light
but the heat of the fire was intense. Within a half hour
black smoke had the harbor in near darkness with thick smoke wafting
over to the Jolly Roger and the West End Ferry Dock
The
BVI Fire Department arrived in about 10-15 minutes, but it took them
another 20 minutes to figure out how to get their water pumps going and
the hoses operational. Finally a passerby, a retired Navy
fire fighter, fixed one of the water pumps, and they were
finally able to inflate their hoses with the much needed water.
Eventually
chemicals were introduced to try to bring the roaring blaze under
control. As of 12:30pm, the fire appeared to be out.
The disaster attracted
hundreds of qawkers, most arrived by foot, since quite a few people are
employed on Frenchman's Cay during the day time, others who arrived by
car. Quite a few raced down the street, as if they were late
for their lottery winnings, and wanted to drive right up and
park next to the fire trucks and even next to the
blaze itself! This prompted the Police to put up a yellow
"do not cross" tape line, to try to hold the misguided back.
Destroyed were the truck, though an
outline of the cab remains, as seen in the photos, and
reportedly the restrooms, showers and a boat. Once the crowd disperses,
we will try to get more pictures of the subsequent damages and post
or link them here.
Electricity is off at
the Wharf, for at least the rest of the day, with most of the
businesses closed, but current was restored to parts of
Frenchman's Cay several hours later.
*****
Ironically,
Pussers had an explosion at 11am on February 17th, 6
weeks earlier
(see this link).
The fire department was
quite tardy to that fire and later it was learned that ALL fire trucks,
yes every single one of them, go to buy fuel at the same time each week
and on February 17th, all fire trucks were lined up in Road Town to
take on fuel!
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