Seaworthy Magazine: Why Boats Catch Fire

One problem with a fire aboard a boat is that unlike a house where running across the street to escape the flames is an option, on a boat there’s no place to go but overboard. Unfortunately, this violates the second rule of boating: Stay with the boat. Ironically, if enough of what the boat is floating on can be brought into the boat, the fire can usually be put out. This, however, violates the first law of boating: Keep the water outside the boat.

Obviously, stopping fires from getting started in the first place is the best defense. Fortunately, the best source for learning how to prevent fires is right here at Seaworthy—our Marine Insurance claim files. The files contain hundreds of fire-related claims which Seaworthy editors have spent many hours analyzing. Here’s a rundown:

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