Watch Hill firefighters extinguish 'suspicious' boat fire
Westerly — Fire and police officials are investigating a suspicious boat fire that happened early Tuesday morning on Napatree Point.
Watch Hill Fire Chief Robert Peacock said firefighters were called to the scene at around 2:10 a.m. after a Bluff Avenue resident reported a fully involved boat fire off the tip of Napatree.
The 38-foot cabin cruiser was abandoned after losing power and running aground on July 9.
The boat had graffiti on it with the words, "Property of Taylor Swift." Swift owns a mansion on Watch Hill.
Firefighters from the Watch Hill and Misquamicut fire departments had to use portable pumps that drew water from the ocean to fight the blaze.
They used four all-terrain utility vehicles to travel more than a mile to get the equipment to the scene.
The ATVs belonged to the Watch Hill and Misquamicut fire departments and the Watch Hill Conservancy.
Peacock said he requested mutual aid from the Misquamicut Fire Department because he did not want the fire to spread to sensitive ecological areas of Napatree.
Peacock said the fire is being investigated by the Westerly Police Department.
The U.S. Coast Guard and the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management were also notified.
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