Tauranga Marina fire: 15 boats damaged, pier repairs under way

Four boats - a yacht and three launches - were badly damaged. Photo / Tom Eley

Fifteen boats were damaged in a fire at Tauranga Marina on Wednesday, with the cause yet to be determined.

Four boats - a yacht and three launches - had to be removed from the water on to the hard deck due to the damage sustained, marina manager Greg Prescott said.

Another 11 at the marina had insurance claims laid.

“Heat and smoke and electronic damage were unfortunately, sustained.”

A yacht damaged by the Wednesday morning fire at the Tauranga Marina.

The pier was damaged in the fire, but due to ongoing upgrades and rebuilding under way at the marina, he said it would not take long to fix the damage.

“We can fix [the pier] very quickly because we have the parts here that we need.

“We have got a barge with a crane on site, and we will get the electrician down here.”

The marina in Tauranga Harbour at Sulphur Point bills itself as the Bay’s largest marina and haul-out facility, with more than 550 berths.

The marina had been in the middle of rebuilding Pier D and E, but marina society chairman Eric Tait said those resources would have to be reallocated.

“We have had to pull them off, rebuild them, and move on them to the repairs.

It was the first incident of this kind since the marina opened in 1982, Tait said.

One of the launches damaged by the Wednesday morning fire at Tauranga Marina.

The owners of each boat would need to contact their insurance companies, while the marina would need to contact theirs, he said.

“All marina members must be insured. They must have an electrical warrant of fitness and have public liability insurance. It’s quite strict criteria to be a member of the society.”

The fire was first reported as affecting two boats in the Tauranga Marina at 1.20am on Thursday.

At the height of the response, five fire trucks and three support vehicles were fighting the blaze, with eight crews from Tauranga, Mount Maunganui, and Greerton stations attending.

Five fire engines and three support vehicles attended the marina fire.

A Fire and Emergency New Zealand spokesperson said crews attended until 5.45am.

“The last truck left at 10.40am.”

A fire investigator was assigned to determine what caused the fire, the spokesperson said.

“The cause and origin of the fire have not yet been determined.”