Lacey Marina Fire Ruled Accidental

Investigators have determined that a fire that destroyed five boats at a marina near Barnegat Bay was started accidentally.

A spokesman for the Ocean County prosecutor’s office tells The Asbury Park Press origin of the accident has not been determined.

The wind-whipped fire destroyed five boats and damaged two others last week at the Ocean Beach Marine Centers in Lacey Township.

No one was injured in the fire. Firefighters said a stiff south wind actually spared several other boats nearby by blowing the flames away from them.

A boater on the scene estimated damage from the blaze at between a half-million and a million dollars. Officials are still tallying official damage totals.

(Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press.  All Rights Reserved.)