Warrenton firefighters extinguished fishing vessel fire

Published 1:54 pm Friday, February 20, 2026

Feb. 15 fire started below deck on the Maverick

On Sunday Feb. 15, Warrenton firefighters extinguished a small fire below deck onboard the F/V Maverick, an 82-foot-long commercial fishing vessel moored at the Warrenton Marina.

According to the investigation, the cause of the two-alarm fire is still undetermined, but officials have speculated that a vent fan may have fallen and started the fire.

“Luckily it wasn’t as big (a fire) as we thought it would be,” said deputy chief Scott Watson, the incident commander on the scene.

According to Watson, on Sunday night, the Warrenton fire department responded to a call about smoke coming from a vessel at the Warrenton Marina.

Warrenton firefighters arrived on scene where they were met by a member of the Maverick’s crew. They said that they could see smoke from the hull but could not see any flames.

Watson called for backup because he said that below deck fires like these can quickly exhaust firefighters.

“It just collects that heat like an oven in there,” he said.

Firefighters came to assist from Lewis and Clark, Astoria and Gearhart.

Four Warrenton firefighters went below deck with water hoses and quickly put out the fire.

“(It) produced a lot of heat and a lot of smoke but a small amount of fire,” said Watson.

Tim Hill, a retired shipbuilder with over 30 years in the industry assessed the situation. “I don’t think the damage (will) be massive,” he said.

Hill said that the fire would have had to be very intense for it to cause structural damage to the Maverick’s steel hull.

As a precaution, Watson urged mariners to make sure that their fire suppression systems are charged and ready at a moment’s notice.