6 boathouses destroyed, 5 damaged in TD Marina Fire, Aug. 1

Here is a view of the fire at around 8:30 p.m. on Monday night, Aug. 1. Contributed Photo

Here is the view of the destruction this morning, Aug. 2 at about 9 a.m.

By Tom Peterson 

Firefighters continued to knock down hot spots on the boathouses this morning, Tuesday, Aug. 2.

Locals, as well as firefighters, fought a blaze that started on the deck of a boathouse in The Dalles Marina on Aug. 2 that ended up destroying six of the structures and damaging five others.

Embers from the massive blaze blew into the juniper bushes next to the Interstate 84 westbound onramp at around 9:45 p.m., creating another blaze that forced closures of the freeway while firefighters beat the blaze back.

The highway did not reopen until about 11:45 p.m. 

The fire at the marina, the second in 13 months, caused Millions of dollars in damage, based on the value of boathouses and the cost of paying for the environmental cleanup. 

The blaze started at around 7 p.m. last night, Aug. 1, and those staying at the boathouses appeared to have captured the point of origin in photos, a BBQ on the B Finger of the docks. 

Oregon State Fire Marshall’s investigators are still determining the cause.

However, no official determination of the cause has been announced at this point and the Oregon State Fire Marshall’s office is doing a full investigation due to the size of the blaze.

During the blaze, firefighters could be seen accessing the fire on the narrow docks with hoses coming from water supplies from A, B, and C fingers. 

During the fire, people could also be seen swimming around and near the blaze and civilians had hooked up garden hoses and to fight the fire on their own. Others also picked up firefighter hoses that were not being utilized to douse the blaze.

Multiple engines and police vehicles lined the parking lot of the marina, as fire agencies from around the gorge were called out to the fire. 

Fire Chief Robert Palmer with Mid-Columbia Fire & Rescue was the incident commander. 

Unlike the blaze in July 2021, no vessels sank during the massive fire. 

Similar to the ‘21 fire, it proved difficult to beat down as the boathouses are placed within a foot or two of each other and their floats are touching. Temperatures from the fire can reach 1,800 to 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit with the intensity of the estimated 12-mile-per-hour breeze, said Division Chief and Fire Marshall Jay Jay Wood. 

That heat is easily transferred to the next boathouse, causing the fire to spread quickly.      

This morning, boathouse owners were watching over the marina in hopes of getting back onto the docks to assess damage or retrieve items, such as food from non-electrified refrigerators.

It was noted that one of the boathouses that burned had undergone $20,000 of recent repairs.

It was also pointed out that The Dalles Police Chief Tom Worthy was an owner of one of the boathouses.  

The docks remained closed while the investigation was taking place. Northern Wasco County PUD was also assessing the damage and working toward restoring electricity to boathouses in fingers A and C.

Wood said one firefighter was treated for heat-related illness and no other injuries occurred that he was aware of.

Containment booms to catch debris and water contaminants such as oil were up this morning at the mouth of the Marina as well as around the boathouses that burned.

Supplies used to absorb oil and grease.

Associated Underwater Services had their lead on-site to coordinate with Mid-Columbia Fire And Rescue the final stage of fire control by 11:30 p.m. on Monday, said Port President Greg Weast. The Port of The Dalles owns the marina.

As of this morning, the Underwater Services company had deployed floating containment booms at the mouth of the marina entrance as well as around the burned boathouses. Port Executive Director Andrea Klaas said she was able to get the team onsite with a call last night to limit the environmental damage.  

This morning, salvage workers were also unloading stacks of absorbent materials to remove oil and grease. 

Robert Mester with Northwest Maritime Consultants, who oversaw the cleanup last year, was also on site overseeing the environmental cleanup work.

Fire agencies from Dufur, Klickitat County, Dallesport and Hood River assisted Mid-Columbia Fire and Rescue.

Here is a view of the onramp to I-84 heading west from The Dalles Marina captured by David DesRochers on Monday night, Aug. 1.

Here is the same onramp on i-84 this morning. Juniper bushes burn fast and hot.