The Seldovia Police Department is investigating a boat fire near a public dock in Jakolof Bay. The M/V Purecin, which was beached on state tidelands near the dock, was set on fire somewhere between Sunday and Monday evening.
The vessel sank at the dock last December, and its owner had the vessel pulled from the water a few days later. Seldovia City Manager Tod Larson said the city has been working with the state and the owner to remove the vessel over the past eight months.
Larson thinks the most recent incident happened somewhere between 5 p.m. on Sunday and 6 p.m. on Monday. Larson said Seldovia Police Chief Robin Daniels responded Monday after the report came in.
“It had been destroyed, taken apart and lit on fire. The chief, by the time he had gotten there, the fire was out. It had been out for a while,” Larson explained. “Somehow somebody had gotten in there without anybody seeing.”
Pieces of the Purecin left on the beach were cleaned up to prevent the tide from spreading additional debris. Larson said Seldovia Police are looking into the case but they currently have no leads.
“There’s been a number of notifications made. So all the major marine agencies know that this has been an issue,” he said.
The Coast Guard declined to look into the matter, and Larson said the city hasn’t heard back from other agencies, such as the Alaska Department of Fish and Game or the Department of Natural Resources.
The vessel was removed early this week after its owner paid a contractor to haul it to the landfill. Larson does not expect there will be any contamination issues at the site.
