Man Uses Raft to Escape Sailboat Fire

A 54-year-old sailor used an inflatable raft to escape a fire that erupted in the galley of his 34-foot sailboat while he was about 12 miles off the coast of Newport Beach, authorities said. Robert Harrington, who lived aboard the Captain J and normally docked in San Diego, told authorities the fire ignited after he turned on the stove to make coffee and went topside to adjust his sails. Harrington lowered an inflatable 8-foot boat into the water and radioed for help. The U.S. Coast Guard sent a helicopter, the cutter Divide and an auxiliary boat to his aid. The Orange County Sheriff’s Department Harbor Patrol also sent a boat. Coast Guard Petty Officer Thomas Honke said Harrington was picked up by a passing boat three minutes before the helicopter and rescue boats arrived. A Coast Guard auxiliary boat extinguished the fire and tried to tow Harrington’s sailboat to shore, but it sank several miles off the coast.