Staff Reports
WILSON — Two Wilson men are in stable condition after working on a boat that caught fire Monday afternoon.
Derrick Kent, 33, and John Fallesen, 22, were taken by Mercy Flight to Erie County Medical Center Burn Unit after being treated at the scene for extensive burns to their arms and legs, as well as some respiratory burns. Burns covered about 20 percent to 30 percent of the victims’ bodies, according to the Niagara County Sheriff’s Department.
Deputies were called to Sunset Bay Marina, where Kent and Fallesen are employees. The men were working on a boat when it caught fire inside the shop. Kent, after being burned, dragged the boat from the building with a forklift to prevent the building from catching fire.
The action saved the building and the other boats inside it, said deputy Michael Licinio.
Deputies said the fire started when the victims were working on the boat’s engine. The boat backfired, throwing gasoline vapor into the air, which then ignited and caused the burns to the men, according to reports. Wilson, South Wilson, and Miller Hose fire companies responded to the scene to put out the fire and give medical aid to the victims.
The boat was a 1987, 21-foot Cris-Craft owned by a Tonawanda man. The boat was destroyed in the fire. The building only had minor smoke damage, according to the report.
