HOLLYWOOD, FLA. (WSVN) - An overnight boat fire broke out at a Hollywood marina due to a lit candle, fire officials said Friday.
The fire started around 11:30 p.m., Thursday, at the Loggerhead Marina due to a lit candle in the bathroom, according to the Hollywood Fire Rescue fire chief.
The flames spread to a neighboring boat, and both boats ended up sinking. Two other boats nearby were left charred.
A 7News viewer sent in video she shot from her balcony of the flames shooting up into the sky.
One man who lives nearby said he saw the flames and was worried for his boat, which he had docked at the same marina. “The blaze was, I’m gonna say anywhere between 100 to 150 feet in the air at one time,” said witness John Kurzman. “We heard a rather large explosion, probably either the fuel tank or the gasoline tank in one of the vessels ignited and exploded.”
“There were two boats at the time on fire, and the fire was spreading,” said Kurzman. “I immediately got on my phone and called 911.”
Firefighters were able to respond quickly enough to stop the fire from spreading. No one was injured during the fire. Witnesses said the fire department probably saved multiple boats docked at the marina.
“Fire on a boat is a horrible thing,” said Kurzman. “Fiberglass burns very rapidly, and worse than that is the fuel that you have on board, and I can’t praise or say enough good things about the fire department. They were just fantastic. Without them, I think the whole marina would have gone up in flames.”
Copyright 2024 Sunbeam Television Corp. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.