VIDEO: Fire breaks out on Golden Ray wreck
Written by Nick Blenkey
Screen grab from video posted on Twitter by @WightKATU
Coast Guard and Unified Command personnel were this afternoon trying to suppress a fire that broke out within the remaining portion of the wreck of the capsized car carrier Golden Ray, which is being dismantled and removed in sections from St. Simons Sound., Ga.
Local media report Coast Guard spokesperson Michael Himes as saying that the fire was likely caused by welding torches being used by technicians who were making interior cuts to prepare a cutting path for the next cut through the wreck, which is being sliced into sections using a chain rigged between the twin gantries of the heavy lift vessel VB-10000.
Reportedly, cutting had been suspended as the technicians made their preparatory cuts.
The St. Simons Sound Incident Response issued this statement;
All non-essential responders from the VB-10000 have been safely evacuated and there are no reported injuries at this time.
Responders were conducting pre-cutting operations and actively using fire suppression systems as a preventative measure when the fire began.
Firefighting vessels are on scene. Safety personnel are conducting community air monitoring.
Posts on Twitter, YouTube and a live FaceBook stream showed smoke, and at time flames, coming from the wreck.
