Exactly why an engine on South Whidbey Fire/EMS’ year-old, 32-foot boat failed remains a mystery.

South Whidbey Fire/EMS Chief Rusty Palmer did not have an estimate for when the district’s $500,000 grant-funded fireboat will return to service after updating the fire district commissioners Thursday night on the status of Marine 3.

The boat’s starboard engine failed June 25 during a regular training exercise and needs to be replaced. Palmer said the district is still investigating what caused the failure. The electronic units that monitor the engines are currently at Cascade Marine Service in Everett, Palmer said.

“They’re reading them to figure out what’s going on,” Palmer said. “We’ll probably go out to a third party to make sure everybody agrees what caused the engine failure. Until that’s done, we’re still trying to figure out [what] the failure was.”

The fireboat only has 240 hours of usage, Palmer said.

“We’re moving as fast as we can so we can get the boat back out,” he said.

According to Mike Goff, owner of North Island Boats in Anacortes, the engine could cost anywhere from $30,000 to $35,000.

The warranty with the engine manufacturer, Hamilton Engine Sales, is for one year or 1,000 hours of usage, and it is yet to be determined whether the warranty will apply.