Investigators release details about fire that destroyed floating Alton restaurant
ALTON, N.H. —
Officials are releasing new information about the fire that tore through The Dive, a floating bar and restaurant on Lake Winnipesaukee.
According to the state fire marshal’s office, the fire was reported around 3:40 p.m. Saturday, while the boat was anchored at the Smalls Cove sandbar in Alton and open for business.
Firefighters from Alton, Gilford, Tuftonboro, and Wolfeboro responded to put out the flames. The New Hampshire State Police Marine Patrol also helped with the response.
No civilian injuries were reported, though the Alton Fire Department confirmed one firefighter had a minor injury.
In a statement, Alton Fire Department Chief Reinert said firefighters had limited resources, with a handful of departments able to use boats with firefighting capabilities on the lake.
High boat traffic on the lake Saturday also made the response harder, as crews had to get around other boats.
State Fire Marshal Sean Toomey said investigators think the fire started in the kitchen area. The fire is not considered suspicious, and the vessel owner has been fully cooperative with the investigation.
Toomey said The Dive passed a safety inspection just weeks before the fire. Despite that, he added investigators are now focused on the kitchen exhaust system, ductwork, and concealed spaces above the cooking line to determine how it might have begun.
“If we do end up deeming the fire starting in a concealed space, that would not be something that would be normally looked at as part of a regular inspection,” Toomey said.
Toomey noted this is the first fire of its kind that he’s had to investigate in his time as a fire marshal.
“It’s a pretty unique vessel, moving on the water impacted by the waves and things like that,” Toomey said. “So, we’re taking that into consideration, (and ask), ‘Could that have had an impact?'”
The kitchen’s suppression system is designed to protect equipment under the hood and within the ductwork itself, Toomey explained, meaning a fire that started just outside that system would not have been suppressed by it.
The Dive’s owners posted on Facebook Saturday night, calling it “the hardest day in our journey.”
“Watching The Dive burn was absolutely heartbreaking, and we are devastated by this loss,” the post read. The owners praised bystanders who swam to the vessel with fire extinguishers and thanked first responders for their efforts.
The Dive’s Assistant Manager, McKayla Bond, provided the following statement to News 9 regarding the online fundraiser she started to help The Dive get back to business:
“Even though it was only my first season at The Dive, it took no time at all to see that Jamie and Betsy had created much more than a floating restaurant and bar. It was so evident that for the last nine years, The Dive has become a place where people were making memories, and celebrating milestones, and building lifelong friendships. The response over the last day has shown just how much this place means to people, and so that’s what the GoFundMe l’ve created represents, and it’s of such sudden uncertainty.
What I do know is that the response from the community has been overwhelming in the most magical way, and if there’s ever a path forward, it’ll be because the community showed up the way it has for two of the most exceptional people I’ve ever had the pleasure of working under.”
Toomey said as of Sunday, the boat was towed from the scene and returned to its owners.
Investigators are still working to figure out the exact cause.
Anyone with information is asked to contact the New Hampshire State Fire Marshal’s Office at 603-223-4289 or fmo@dos.nh.gov.
Dining and Cooking