Fishing vessel explodes at Valdez

The commercial fishing vessel Fireman exploded this evening in the Valdez harbor adjacent to the Best Western hotel, the U.S. Coast Guard reports.

A person aboard walked off after the blast and went by ambulance to a hospital, the Coast Guard says.

Emergency responders "found the Fireman afloat with the majority of its wheelhouse torn apart by the explosion."

It happened around 7:55 p.m. and the cause is under investigation, the Coast Guard says.

State records show the 35-foot Fireman belongs to Thomas S. Lopez. His address is listed as a postal box in Valdez.