Three wooden ferries caught fire at a bustling river tourist spot in Thailand.

The blaze erupted when a boat battery short-circuited, sparking flames that quickly spread to two other vessels nearby at the Wat Ratchasingkhon Pier on Sunday evening.

Boat operator Taweesak Thiangthanasak, 47, tried to douse the rapidly growing blaze with a fire extinguisher but it spread to two nearby boats. The flames burned through the tethers, leaving the boats drifting and aflame on the Chao Phraya River.

Firefighters arrived at the scene near the popular Asiatique The Riverfront mall at 6:50 pm local time. They extinguished the fire with 35 minutes and no casualties or injuries were reported.

The Office of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation said the fire was caused by a short-circuit while a boat battery was being charged.

The agency said: 'The initial report on the fire was that an electrical short-circuit from the pier to the boat's battery while charging caused the fire to spread and damage three boats.'

Taweesak claimed he performed safety checks before berthing the boats at the pier at around 5 pm.

He added: 'I checked everything for safety before returning to the boat at the far end. About an hour later, I saw a reflection of flames in the water. I was shocked when I looked out and saw the nearby boat with its stern on fire.

'I quickly grabbed two fire extinguishers and sprayed them but the flames spread so quickly that two other boats caught on fire. The mooring ropes snapped, leaving two boats floating out into the river. Officials arrived about 20 minutes later to extinguish the fire. The boats at the dock sustained only minor damage.'

Kritphet Chaichuai, Director-General of the Marine Department, said recent heavy rain was believed to have caused the battery to short-circuit. He added a committee was set up to determine the exact cause of the fire.