Boat explosion in Tauranga injures 1 person

Firefighters responded to the boat fire on Saturday afternoon. Photo / Bevan Conley

A boat was removed from Tauranga Harbour after an explosion that injured one person on the weekend.

A Fire and Emergency New Zealand spokesperson said crews were notified of reports of an explosion on a boat at 1.34pm on Saturday.

Crews from Mount Maunganui and Tauranga attended, and the fire was quickly contained.

The damaged vessel was later removed from the water.

A Hato Hone St John spokesperson said one person was taken to Tauranga Hospital in a moderate condition.

Police confirmed they responded to the incident, saying the explosion occurred about 1.35pm and one person suffered moderate injuries.

Bay of Plenty Regional Council senior compliance officer and regional on-scene commander John Morris said they were notified by FENZ on Saturday afternoon that a vessel at the Sulphur Point boat ramp had caught fire.

At that point, the fire had been extinguished and the vessel was back on its trailer.

“FENZ were advised to move the vessel on to a grassed area and the contaminated water in the boat’s bilge was transferred into containers for disposal.

“The vessel was subsequently removed from the site. No oil response from Bay of Plenty Regional Council was required as there was no report of a discharge into the harbour.”