SMOKE plumes filled the air after a yacht shockingly exploded at a packed marina. The severely damaged yacht was being refueled at Schooner Island Marina in Wildwood, New Jersey when the fire broke out on Thursday, August 22. The fire was responsible for "forcing one person on board to jump to safety," Fox News' WTXF-TV reported.
There were no serious injuries, but the boat sank to the bottom of the marina, according to the outlet. Witnesses said the fire was the result of an explosion and that the 40-foot yacht was refueling when the fire began, NJ.com reported.
Bystanders attempted to slow the flames as firefighters arrived at the scene. Read More On Boat Fires Wildwood firefighters received the call at 12:40 pm and "had the fire under control" by 1:20 pm, according to WTXF-TV. However, swirling smoke clouds remained visible around 2 pm as police and fire officials responded to the incident, per NJ.
com. Though blocks away, beachgoers could see the smoke and took pictures as it soared through the sky and was pushed by winds. Local police at the scene said the New Jersey State Police are heading the investigation, per the publication.
Most read in The US Sun Patrons watched the scene from afar as the scent of gasoline filled the air. Witness Paul Daiber has been storing his boat at the marina for 25 years. At the time of the fire, he was fishing at the end of the deck opposite from where the affected yacht was moored, the outlet reported.
This was the first time he saw a boat explosion at the marina. "It's scary," he told NJ.com, describing the explosion as a powerful thud.
He said debris from the yacht was sent into the air, landing on nearby docks. Per Daiber, bystanders rushed to find fire extinguishers. Witnesses of many other disasters have caught the horrid scenes on camera.
Monday, August 19, 2024: 184ft Bayesian luxury yacht capsized and sank in Italy , tragically killing seven people Friday, August 16, 2024: Video footage caught a North Carolina home being swept out to sea due to the effects of Hurricane Ernesto Monday, August 5, 2024: Hurricane Debby killed at least five people as it wreaked havoc across Florida and Georgia Firefighter crews tried drenching the blaze that turned into an inferno, which was visible from across the marina, he told the outlet. "It just progressively got worse and worse until it erupted in flames," Daiber continued. "A huge explosion.
It was like something out of a movie," another witness told WTXF-TV, adding that she heard a "boom!" She continued, "And the next thing you know, I saw the deck from the boot flying up in the air from one dock to another, and it flew over to our dock. "Next thing you know, there's all black smoke, and next thing was flames. "And everyone was just rushing down, trying to get hoses and fire extinguishers.
" Her husband told WTXF-TV that the yacht was "too far gone" as bystanders tried to help. Read More on The US Sun Witnesses and other marina boat owners thought that fumes from the gasoline could have ignited and caused the explosion, the outlet reported. However, an official cause has not yet been reported as the situation remains under investigation.
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