VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. – An boat explosion at Halifax Harbor Marina on Sunday injured four people, according to the Daytona Beach Fire Department.
Firefighters responded just after 1:15 p.m. and the department said the four boaters had just refueled the 34-foot vessel, which exploded when they tried to start its engine.
[TRENDING: Trying to decide what Florida candidate to vote for? These guides may help | Wrong-way driver causes major crash on Interstate 95, carjacks FedEx truck, crashes into pole and dives in river, troopers say | Become a News 6 Insider (it’s free!)]
Vincent Kraus said he was heading out on the water around 1 p.m. Sunday from the marina when he saw the boat explode.
“We were on our way to help them to make sure everything was OK, but it was rescued there before,” Kraus said.
The fire department shared security video of the explosion on its Facebook page. The footage shows how the explosion sent multiple loose objects flying from the boarded vessel, as well as smoke from what officials said was an ensuing fire on the boat.
[WATCH THE VIDEO BELOW]
In a 911 call, you can hear a person trying to get everyone off the dock after the explosion.
“Get back! Get off the dock! Everybody get off the dock!” the 911 caller told the dispatcher. “The guys are trying to move. There (are) active flames! An active fire inside of that boat!”
She said there were other boaters passing by, trying to pull the fiery boat away from the dock.
[LISTEN TO THE 911 CALL BELOW]
“I could see the bow tail and part of the back,” said Laurie Brennan, a boater and witness. “It was a very large vessel.”
Another 911 caller said she saw smoke and heard loud explosions.
“I see smoke. I’m not actually seeing flames, but it’s still smoking,” she said in the 911 call.
[LISTEN TO THE 911 CALL BELOW]
One of the four people who were injured in the explosion — a woman in her 50s — was airlifted to an Orlando hospital for burns, firefighters said. The other three boaters were treated on scene and refused transport to the hospital, according to the department.
“It’s sad to see more than anything,” said Ilene Jones, a boater. “Somebody definitely had a bad day.”
The boat that exploded was towed away from the marina.
Get today’s headlines in minutes with Your Florida Daily: