Pre-dawn fire at Phuket’s Chalong Bay pier destroys 22 speedboats, tour operators left scrambling

A fire broke out and spread rapidly before dawn at a pier in Phuket’s Chalong Bay on Wednesday (Jan 7), destroying 22 speedboats operated by 13 companies.

Many of the boats had been fully refuelled ahead of planned tours of the popular Thai resort island, and damage was estimated at 38 million baht (US$1.2 million), officials said. No casualties were reported.

However, tour operators described the situation as severe, with thousands of tourists unable to depart as the remaining fleet fell short of demand, Thai News Agency reported. 

While some companies secured replacement boats, many tours were cancelled, with operators calling the fire the largest of its kind in the area.

Witnesses told of hearing an explosion on one speedboat before strong winds fanned the flames and spread the fire to nearby vessels, The Nation Thailand news site reported.

Police and rescue workers were alerted at about 4am and firefighters from four municipalities were deployed to contain the blaze, cutting mooring lines to separate the vessels. 

The initial low tide limited access to the pier, delaying attempts to extinguish the blaze.

After the fire was brought under control, Governor Nirat Pongsitthavorn ordered the damaged boats removed and firefighting foam deployed to prevent debris and fuel from polluting the sea, Bangkok Post reported.

The governor praised rescue teams for quickly isolating the burning boats, saying that the fire could have spread to more than 1,000 other fully fuelled tourist boats in the Chalong bay.

Police and forensic officers have been assigned to investigate the incident, including reviewing closed-circuit television footage from the pier and surrounding areas to determine the cause.