North Myrtle Beach barge caught fire during inspections. What happens next?

The large barge looming off the coast of North Myrtle Beach caught fire late Wednesday night, according to a statement from the North Myrtle Beach Fire Department.

Crews were called shortly after 9 p.m. Wednesday night after receiving reports of a possible fire aboard the barge about 1,500 feet from the beach around 21st Avenue South, the statement said.

Before boarding the boats to get to the barge, first responders contacted the crew on board the barge, who told them they had managed to extinguish the flames on their own.

North Myrtle Beach city spokeswoman Lauren Jessie said Thursday there was no damage to the barge itself, but diving equipment used by ocean discharge inspectors was damaged.

She said they expected one to two weeks before they could resume work inspecting the outfalls.

“They’re going to suspend work until they can be re-equipped,” she told the Sun News via text message.

Barge personnel are also waiting for the U.S. Coast Guard to complete inspections of the vessel before they can resume operations.

It could also delay the resumption of inspections, Jessie said, it just depends on how long the inspections take.

Divers and personnel have already been working on the barge to inspect the six ocean spillways to see if they have sustained any storm damage that would require work.

Before the fire, Johnny Burton, North Myrtle Beach’s streets and drainage supervisor, said divers had found no significant damage to the outfalls they had inspected so far this summer.

Once the 21st Avenue site inspection is complete, they will have two more to do at 38th Avenue South and then 45th Avenue South.