M/V Alaska Constructor; Trading Bay, Upper Cook Inlet, Alaska

Trading Bay, Upper Cook Inlet, Alaska | 1988-Nov-02

Initial Notification: At approximately 0830 on November 2, 1988, an explosion ripped through the Alaska Constructor, a 113-foot supply vessel en route from Anchorage to Trading Bay to deliver fuel to an earth-moving operation. The explosion occurred while the vessel was aground at Trading Bay. A tank truck containing 3,000 gallons of gasoline immediately caught fire on the vessel's deck. The Alaska Constructor also had 7,000 gallons of gasoline and 11,000 gallons of diesel in tanks below the deck. The Nikiski Fire Department, workboats in the vicinity, and a U.S. Coast Guard cutter responded to the blaze. One man escaped overboard in the shallow water, while three others remained trapped aboard the vessel. Cook Inlet Pipeline Co. activated the Cook Inlet Response Organization, which sent two vessels and a fireproof boom to curb any pollution. USCG district 17.