One Injured in Fire Aboard Dredger at Mayport, Florida

Coastguardsmen and first responders transfer the victim ashore at Mayport (Jacksonville Fire Rescue Department)

On Saturday, a fire broke out aboard a dredging vessel near Mayport, Florida, injuring one person and prompting a rapid medevac response.

At about 1530 hours on Saturday, Coast Guard Station Mayport received an alert that an engine room fire had occurred aboard the dredging vessel Stuyvesant. Small boat crews from Station Mayport responded to the scene, working together with the local fire department, county sheriff and harbor pilots' association.

The blaze was quickly extinguished, but one crewmember was seriously injured in the fire. A boat crew transported him to an awaiting EMS unit on shore, and the victim was delivered to a local hospital in critical condition, the Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department told local media. The cause of the fire is under investigation.

Courtesy USCG

Stuyvesant is a 10,000 dwt trailing suction hopper dredger. Built at Avondale Shipyard in 1981-2, she is Jones Act qualified and owned by a firm in California.

Stuyvesant's inspection record shows that U.S. Coast Guard inspectors found fire safety issues aboard previously, and that they were corrected when identified. In March 2024, oil-soaked lagging was found on the exhaust leading to the turbocharger on the port main engine, and it was replaced to the inspector's satisfaction. The vessel's PSIX record shows that the same issue was observed and corrected in May 2023.