By Dan Parker

A Port Aransas man injured in a boat fire on Thursday, Oct. 7, has been taken to a hospital in San Antonio for treatment, police said.

Tyson Winton sustained moderate burn injuries, mostly to his left leg, foot and arm, according to Kelly Henson, a deputy with the Nueces County Precinct 4 Constable’s Office. Henson also is Winton’s cousin.

Winton was hurt when a fire broke out about 2 p.m. on a 17-foot boat he was working on in a driveway at a home in the 2600 block of South 11^th Street.

Winton initially was taken by ambulance to Christus Spohn Hospital Memorial in Corpus Christi and he later was taken aboard HALO Flight, a medical helicopter, to Brook Army Medical Center in San Antonio. Winton is in the medical center’s intensive care unit, but his life is not believed to be in danger, Henson said.

Winton was working on a boat at the home of Mike and Andrea Roberson when the blaze broke out, said Port Aransas Police Lt. James Stokes.

Mike Roberson uses the distinctive-looking, red-hued boat in his marine salvage business, Tow Boat U.S. The boat was heavily damaged by the fire. Next to the boat was a trailer with a 19-foot sport fishing boat that also was heavily damaged by the fire.

Mike Roberson has been the focus of some attention around the community lately because he and his wife put a sign out in front of their business, criticizing police after an officer arrested him on a misdemeanor charge on Thursday, Sept. 30, for allegedly disobeying an officer’s order. (See page 2B of the current edition of the South Jetty for a complete story on the incident.)

Roberson said the arrest was unwarranted. PAPD Chief Scott Burroughs said it was.

Stokes and Roberson said there’s no connection between the sign and the fire. Stokes said he didn’t know the precise cause of the fire, but he said he was convinced it was some sort of accident. Roberson said he agreed that it was an accident.

Roberson was inside his home, only a few dozen feet away from the boats, when the fire erupted.

Port Aransas police and the town’s volunteer fire department responded to the blaze. Also responding was Port Aransas Emergency Medical Services and the Nueces County Precinct 4 Constable’s Office.