WYSH AM 1380 Anderson County's Classic Hit Country!
A boat caught fire not once, but twice, in the back yard of a home on Briceville Highway late Sunday afternoon.
Anderson County Deputy Dustin Hensley’s report indicates that he and firefighters from the Briceville Volunteer Fire Department responded to the home at 1138 Briceville Highway after someone called 911 and said a 26-foot Bayliner boat in the back yard was on fire.
Firefighters were able to extinguish the initial fire quickly and a preliminary investigation determined that an extension cord leading to the boat battery from a nearby shed was the likely cause of the fire, but could not establish that for absolute certain.
Hensely reported that he made contact with homeowners Charles and Valissa Cox at around 9 pm, and while he was on the scene speaking with them, the fire on the boat rekindled, only to be quickly put out again by Briceville firefighters.
The Coxes said that they had recently been making improvements to the boat and that it was fully insured. They also told deputies that when they had parked the boat for the winter, it had nearly a full tank of gasoline, but that when they tried to start the boat over the winter, almost all of the gas was gone. They also had noted that it appeared that the lock on the sleeping area had been tampered with and said they had found the door open, but nothing missing.
The Criminal Investigations Division is looking into the cause of the fire.
No one was injured.
