72-Foot Yacht Caught Fire and Sank, Three Passengers and Two Dogs Survive Miraculously

An airplane flies above as smoke rises from the boat 'If Only', a 39-meter-long yacht, that is on fire off Saint-Laurent-du-Var, near Nice, southern France, on August 17, 2017. The yacht had caught fire in the early afternoon of August 17, according to media reports. Eleven people on board the yacht were evacuated, one person was taken to hospital. According to further reports, the fire had started in the engine room.
(Photo : Photo credit should read YANN COATSALIOU/AFP via Getty Images)

A huge smoke coming from a distance can be seen by onlookers, which happens to be a 72-foot yacht blazing off the coast of New Hampshire.

The catastrophe unfolded on Saturday afternoon, around 4pm, when the 2007 Marlow boat known as "Elusive" was sailing towards a marina in New Castle, and started close to Fort Stark State Park.

Fire crew from multiple departments took hours to extinguish the fire on the yacht, where three passengers and two dogs miraculously survived, the Independent reported.

The Burning Yacht and the Good Samaritan

Three people and two dogs were rescued from the 72-foot yacht by a "Good Samaritan" on another private boat, before local authorities and emergency crews could arrive.

"Whatever happened on the boat happened fast, and they had to jump in the water," Portsmouth Fire Chief Todd Germain told USA Today. According to one of the passengers onboard, he realized there was black smoke billowing up from below deck, the New Hampshire Department of Safety said.

"Within minutes the boat had completely filled with smoke," says a spokesperson for Marine Patrol.

The passengers onboard included the spouses Arthur "Kitt" Watson, 67, and Diane Watson, 57, both from New Canaan, and the yacht's first mate, Jarrod Tubbs, 33, from Jupiter, Florida, all of whom reportedly sustained mild hypothermia and injuries requiring treatment at the Portsmouth Regional Hospital, as per the Independent.

All were safely released later Saturday afternoon.

Also read: 430-Million-Year-Old Charcoal Deposits Reveal the Oldest Wildfires on Record

The Saturday Inferno

Mr. "Kitt" Watson and his wife Diane have been an active member of the yacht Team Too Elusive and have travelled the world by boat, "racing and cruising his whole life," Mr Watson said.

According to NBC News Boston, the couple have been living in their yacht for the past year, but it was only a matter of seconds before they decided to jump in the cold Maine waters, along with their dogs and swam as fast as they could, reaching about 100 yards away from the marina where they planned to dock. "It was the most frightening, harrowing experience we ever had," Mr Watson told NBC.

A local lobster fisherman fetched the trio and their dogs, but were in the frigid waters long enough and gotten mild hypothermia.

The pair could only watch as their vessel sank below the surface. Both are currently staying with family until they plan for the next steps.

"Our whole lives were on that boat," the Mr Watson said, "it happened so fast, it was just frightening how fast this happened."

"It's something you see on TV," Ms Watson added.

Amber Lagace, the spokesperson for the Marine Patrol, said the passengers are "doing fine physically, but are mentally still trying to process everything." Their golden doodles are doing good as well.

The New Castle Fire Department expresses their gratitude and appreciation to the "overwhelming support from the community." The Portsmouth Fire Chief said the cause of the fire is still being investigated, and that the coastguard continues to monitor the area where the vessel had sunk well into the day on Sunday.