About 0730 on August 16, 2016, a fire broke out on the upper deck of the passenger vessel Tahoe Queen as it was alongside its home pier on Lake Tahoe undergoing extensive maintenance and repairs. The fire destroyed the wheelhouse and most of the upper deck. Two crewmembers suffered minor injuries; both were treated and released the same day. There were no reports of pollution. The vessel was declared a constructive total loss, valued at $4.8 million.
We determined that the probable cause of the fire aboard passenger vessel Tahoe Queen was the operating company’s poor oversight of its contractors’ adherence to hot work safety policies.
