A piece of Detroit history went up in flames along the riverfront this morning. An old Boblo island boat—the SS Ste. Claire— that had been docked at Riverside Marina for over a year caught on fire.
WDIV Channel 4 broke the news and captured the footage of the fire. Water could hardly even reach the boat, which quickly burned.
The Detroit News reports that the boat is a total loss, although the heartbroken owners want to rebuild. No one was injured. A fireboat did show, but the News states, “Firefighters who man the fire boat are also tasked with operating a fire station, and that could have delayed the fire boat from arriving sooner.”
Restoration efforts had been underway on the old boat, which operated for 81 years until Boblo Island closed in 1991.
We’ll update with more information as this story develops.
Old Boblo boat on fire right now at Detroit marina. What we know: https://t.co/jdmPTULOZW pic.twitter.com/tSLzyojUVY
— FOX 2 Detroit (@FOX2News) July 6, 2018
Nooooo! Former #Boblo boat engulfed in flames at #Detroit marina https://t.co/5p8pagr1h8 via @detroitnews So many #family outings and #fun memories. @Faygo #RedPop #TV commercial has the vibe and feel Watch it here https://t.co/rsP940Goir
— Leland K. Bassett (@detlistener) July 6, 2018
Absolutely devastated. :( #detroit #boblo pic.twitter.com/Cx05NvF2ZU
— HistoricDetroit.org (@HistoricDET) July 6, 2018
This Boblo boat is on fire right now in Riverside Marina. We're on the scene and will update this story as we learn more: https://t.co/6ZzOaO1v9c pic.twitter.com/VyM4MyVuqx
— The Detroit News (@detroitnews) July 6, 2018
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