A California luxury yacht loaded with fireworks and 1,000 rounds of ammunition burst into flames and eventually sank into the ocean off Marina del Rey on Wednesday night.
The 100-foot, twin-diesel-engine vessel, the Admiral, caught fire while docked in the man-made harbor, prompting a massive response from the Los Angeles Fire Department.
Just two hours after the fire started, the nearly $1 million vessel sank in an 800-acre marina five miles south of Santa Monica.
Two people escaped the blaze without injury, fire officials said.
Witnesses filmed flames ripping through the 100-foot yacht as fireworks lit up black smoke that shot across the sky.
While the firefighting efforts appeared to be successful from the outside, the fire burning inside could not be put out by hoses and the flames continued to destroy the interior. According to KTLA.
Dozens of rescue workers and interested locals looked on as the wrecked boat lay in the marina as workers continued to pour water on the wreckage to put out the fire.
Local residents expressed concern that the fire could spread to nearby ships and cause a chain reaction.
“I saw it completely engulfed in flames, like a lot of us who live here, we heard explosions, we saw fireworks going off and then the flames started so we walked over here and took a video,” resident Lynn Rose said. He told NBC Los Angeles.
The vessel was fuelled by propane gas, which reportedly made fighting the fire “challenging”, and authorities have set up floating physical barriers known as booms to stop diesel fuel and other debris from contaminating the water.
The yacht began to list sideways, forcing authorities to evacuate everyone from the pier. The wrecked yacht sank into the water around 10:30 pm, but fires continued to burn below decks.
Authorities had not said how the fire started as of Thursday morning.
Built by Broward Marine in 1986, the Admiral features four cabins including a master suite, can accommodate 10 guests including three crew members, and was last listed for sale in 2018 for $985,000. Boat International.
The vessel was able to reach a top speed of 18 knots before being destroyed by fire.
The identity of the owner was not immediately released.
