Fire damages historic Argosy cruise ship at Kirkland marina |

A fire at the Kirkland marina on Saturday morning has damaged one of Argosy Cruises’ boats, and one with a long, historic history.

Crews were called out to the lakefront around 6:40 a.m. from a neighbor who noticed the smoke from a boat at the marina.

"(My 2-year-old boy) was crying, so I woke up again," said Anja Klint. "I looked out the window and saw all this smoke kept coming out."

When firefighters arrived, smoke was coming from the 110-foot M.V. Kirkland moored at the marina. Crews arrived to see black smoke coming from the boat, and when they got on the ship they found the engine room engulfed in flames.

"It was spectacular," Klint said. "You don't see that everyday."

The main fire was put out within 30 minutes, but firefighters spent a large amount of time putting out spot fires in small spaces and pockets in the engine room and adjoining rooms on the ship.

Some 50 firefighters from Kirkland, Bellevue and Redmond combined to put the fire out, with boats from the King County Sheriff's Marine Unit and the Seattle Police Department also helping out.

"Ship fires are not something we do routinely," said Lt. Mark Buenting with Kirkland Fire Rescue. "In a ship, there are a lot of confined spaces and we weren't familiar with the vessel."

Representatives from the state Department of Ecology are also at the scene, according to a spokesperson for the US Coast Guard.

There is no word on injuries from the fire. The investigation into the cause is just under way, but the fire was mainly contained to the engine room of the boat. The fire caused $60,000 in damage, according to Grace Steuart with the Kirkland Fire Department. There was no damage to the dock the ship was moored to, nor did any fuel leak into Lake Washington.

Argosy says that the boat was originally built in 1924. It was used as a ferry at the mouth of the Columbia River (serving until the Astoria Bridge was built) and as a ferry between Steilacoom and Anderson Island in Pierce County before the company bought the boat in 1994. It also was used by the military during World War II.