A Coast Guard captain assisting with the investigation into the fire that destroyed the Coast Guard boathouse in Menemsha last Monday said the fire may not have started in the boathouse.

“Initial statements were made that the fire appeared to originate from the boathouse,” said Coast Guard Capt. Verne Gifford. “My conclusion, although this is unofficial . . . I don’t think the same statements that were made Monday, which is that the fire originated in the boathouse, would be made today. I don’t think those people, had they been privy to the initial investigative work, would have said that.”

Captain Gifford’s comments came at a meeting of local, state, and federal government representatives on Friday afternoon at the Coast Guard station in Menemsha. It was the fourth emergency meeting attended by the Chilmark selectmen since the fire broke out Monday afternoon, forcing the evacuation of Menemsha and calling every Vineyard volunteer fire department and EMT to the scene. The boathouse and most of the wooden pier around it were destroyed. There was one injury: an Aquinnah volunteer firefighter received an electric shock and fractured a shoulder during cleanup work after the fire.

Captain Gifford said yesterday that the investigation remains ongoing and is expected to take “multiple weeks” to complete. Chilmark fire chief David Norton confirmed yesterday that fire department volunteers are no longer monitoring the scene because the Coast Guard has fenced off the area, which is officially considered government land. He said the Coast Guard is continuing to ask witnesses to come forward with any information about the fire. People are urged to call the Menemsha station at 508-645-2611 or to drop off pictures that may aid in the investigation.

The fire is now under investigation by five agencies: the state fire marshal, Massachusetts state police, the U.S. Coast Guard, the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), and the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency (MEMA).

At the Friday meeting, Captain Gifford said the official cause and origin were expected to be released sometime in August, although initial estimates of early to mid-month may have been premature. “We are sensitive to the fact that it was the boathouse that was burning. We’re trying in any way possible to remediate any damage done by the fire,” he said.

The Friday meeting was attended by the three Chilmark selectmen, Cape and Islands Rep. Tim Madden, Christopher Adams, a spokesman for Cong. William Delahunt, Susan Rohrbach, a spokesman for Sen. Robert O’Leary, and MEMA acting director Kurt Schwartz. The meeting was called by Mr. Adams, so that local, state and federal representatives could discuss plans to move forward in the wake of the fire. Also invited were Chilmark police chief Brian Cioffi, Mr. Norton, harbor master Dennis Jason and Menemsha Coast Guard chief Jason Olsen.

At the meeting, Captain Gifford said the Coast Guard had already begun to remove some of the fire debris from the harbor. Chief Olsen said the Coast Guard is back to operational status.

The Coast Guard also released the first unofficial count of the number of boats affected by the fire. Captain Gifford said four boats were thought to have been completely destroyed, and about 11 partially damaged. He said if the investigation concludes that origin of the fire is traced back to a Coast Guard building, then they would accept liability for the damaged vessels. But he said the claims process can take time. “[It’s] a weeks-long process. It’s not something that’s going to give money tomorrow to people,” he said. Captain Gifford works out of Coast Guard Station Woods Hole.

Selectman Jonathan Mayhew, who works out of Menemsha as a commercial fisherman, said the suggestion that the fire did not originate in the boathouse was worrisome. “For you to say something different is a little disconcerting to me,” he said. He also said several damaged boats which have sunk to the bottom of the harbor pose a hazard to the fishermen.

“My brother and I, we both have big boats, and we’re going to be very careful,” said Mr. Mayhew, who as of Friday had not yet taken his boat out of the harbor.

From the Chilmark town hall yesterday, executive secretary Tim Carroll said the Coast Guard would reportedly begin hauling the sunken boats out of the harbor tomorrow morning. And a barge had been mobilized yesterday to remove cars stranded at the unaffected end of the West Dock.

At the Friday meeting, Mr. Mayhew asked that the Coast Guard be more involved with locals as clean-up and investigation efforts continue. Mr. Gifford said that a next move for the Coast Guard would be to put together a team of representatives to participate in the investigation, including someone from the state, federal, and local government.

The Coast Guard is also scheduled to hold a question-and-answer session with the public at tonight’s meeting of the selectmen, which begins at 7:30 p.m.

“We tried to be as transparent as possible with what they were finding out,” Captain Gifford said of the investigation so far. “I think we have been pretty open. It’s unfortunate that the investigation process isn’t instantaneous.” But he asked for patience on the part of the town and the public. “The Coast Guard has a commitment to the community. We understand that we’re going to have to do something, but right now it’s not something that I can even speculate on,” Captain Gifford said.

Meanwhile, Kurt Schwartz said MEMA will conduct an independent investigation into the fire. “One should never jump to conclusions about the cause and origin of the fire,” he said.

He also said he would look into available state aid for businesses affected by the fire. But he said that Menemsha businesses, including commercial fishermen, would have to show significant revenue losses due to the fire in order for qualify for an economic injury declaration, making them eligible for aid programs. They would have to prove that they suffered uninsured losses of 40 per cent to their annual income, compared to the preceding 12 months. “If there’s any chance that we could reach that threshold then we’d push to have someone from the small business administration come down, early next week,” he said, adding that such significant losses appeared unlikely in this case.

But the selectmen said that they couldn’t be sure. Frank M. Fenner Jr. reported significant drops in revenue at his restaurant, the Galley, and Mr. Mayhew said commercial fishermen had suffered greatly. “Ironically, some are quite close to that,” Mr. Mayhew said of the threshold for revenue loss.

In other news related to the fire:

• Mr. Carroll said state environmental officials visited Menemsha Pond on Monday morning, and that there was no change in status; the pond remains closed to shellfishing for now due to unknown debris in the water from the fire.

• Fire chief David Norton confirmed that Bill Smith, an Aquinnah volunteer firefighter, was transported to the Martha’s Vineyard Hospital for treatment after he received a strong electric shock and subsequently fractured a shoulder during cleanup work on one of the fire trucks at the Chilmark School last Monday afternoon. The accident happened when a spray of water hit a power line. Mr. Norton said Mr. Smith is recovering. “He seems to be up and about; he is probably not a hundred per cent,” the fire chief said.