Buffalo Springs Police and Texas Parks and Wildlife gave KLBK and EverythingLubbock.com a look at the aftermath of the motor that caught fire Thursday evening at Buffalo Springs Lake.
Buffalo Springs Lake Fire Department and EMS were also on scene Thursday night.
Police said 3 people were on the boat at the time, a 71-year-old man, an 81-year-old woman, and their great-grandson.
Police say a 911 call was made at 7:15 p.m. Thursday. First responders were at the scene at about 7:19 p.m.
Buffalo Springs Lake Police Chief Stewart Naron was one of the officials on scene. He said two of the victims jumped off the boat after the explosion and then pulled onto another pontoon near them in the water.
“Once the it touched the shoreline they got in the water with their fire equipment and were able to completely extinguish that fire,” Naron. “And it was a very short amount of time.”
Officials said the great-grandson and 71-year-old were taken to UMC. The woman had no injuries. They believed the two injured boaters were released early Friday morning with second-degree burns.
“From my perspective, I saw one injury that was more concerning than any other,” Naron said. “You could tell that they had minor burns. Of course I’m not a physician but once I saw the major cut on the one gentleman’s hand my first response was ok we need to get you to the marina because EMS is in route.”
Naron said Thursday’s fire the biggest he had seen at Buffalo Springs Lake in the eight years he has worked there.
“We think the explosion originated from the engine compartment and shortly there after a massive fire started on the boat,” Texas Game Warden Aaron Sims said.
Sims said that when the flames from the initial fire hit the fiber-glass material of the boat, it caused a snowball effect of a bigger fire “fully engulfing” the motor boat.
