Boat blew up at Fairhaven Shipyard...

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FAIRHAVEN — An elderly boatowner is “lucky to be alive” after his on-board breakfast Thursday morning was interrupted by a propane blast that left him seriously hurt and his 34-foot cabin cruiser a complete wreck.

Joseph Landry, 85, of Abington had installed a new 20-pound propane tank on the boat at the Fairhaven Shipyard marina about a week ago, said Fire Chief Timothy P. Francis, who led the on-scene investigation.

“He piped it himself” for the on-board stove, said the chief.

A slow leak somewhere apparently caused enough gas buildup in the hull of the boat to trigger an explosion powerful enough to lift the entire superstructure of the boat and drop it back down at a sharp angle.

Shipyard employees ran to the rescue, and since there was no fire, they began digging Mr. Landry out from the debris inside his cabin until fire, police and emergency medical technicians arrived shortly after 9 a.m. Those on the scene said that pieces of the boat were falling from the sky after the blast.

Chief Francis said Mr. Landry was taken by EMT ambulance to St. Luke’s hospital suffering missing teeth, lacerations, bruises and a probable concussion. Unless there were serious internal injuries, he said, Mr. Landry’s injuries “were not life threatening. He’s lucky to be alive,” said the chief.

Mr. Landry was alone on the boat at the time; shipyard personnel said that he has kept his boat, the Natalie of Boston, at the shipyard marina for many years and usually spent the summers on board. He was alone at the time of Thursday’s explosion.

The Natalie began taking on water after the blast, so shipyard personnel quickly towed it to a marine crane and hoisted it out of the water and on to dry land.

In just minutes, some onlookers old enough to recall the late state Rep. Roger “Sparky” Goyette were recalling how much this incident resembled the day in 1984 when Rep. Goyette’s beloved 44-foot cabin cruiser, the Checkmate, was blown to fragments just after refueling at Popes Island.

Rep. Goyette, seven of his passengers and two bystanders were hurt; among them was his daughter, who was briefly hospitalized.

Chief Francis said that in Mr. Landry’s case, “he was lucky that he was using diesel fuel and not gasoline, which would have posed a greater risk of fire.

Lesson: don't have propane tanks without adequate ventilation.