6 shipmen escape tugboat fire on SI

NEW YORK (AP) - Authorities say six sleeping shipmen were safely evacuated overnight from their burning tugboat docked in a Staten Island harbor.

Firefighters say they awoke the captain and five shipmates aboard the 40-foot vessel shortly after midnight Friday.

The Fire Department says the blaze was on the upper deck of the tugboat “Viking.”

No one was injured.

The fire was put out shortly after 1 a.m.

According to the Staten Island Advance (https://bit.ly/1ktoWLI ), there was minimal damage to the boat, which was docked in Mariners Harbor along Richmond Terrace.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

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Information from: Staten Island Advance, https://www.silive.com