Charter yacht "Serene," an Irwin Custom 75, became enveloped in flames in the early hours of Saturday morning. By daylight all that remained above water was a charred mast and a still-smoldering piling.
Although dockside reports had captain and crew asleep when the fire started, there were no major injuries as they escaped.
The fire blazed with such intensity that motor yacht, "Back Soon," in the Safe Haven Marina slip alongside "Serene," quickly fired up her engines and left.
Boaters in the St. Thomas harbor were awakened by several explosions, which they attributed to propane fuel tanks aboard the burning vessel. Dockside witnesses said Capt. Chris Hubbard was reduced to throwing buckets of water on the raging fire in a futile attempt to stop the blaze.
On Saturday afternoon a fellow charter captain donned dive tanks to try to retrieve a few personal effects from forward sections still recognizable as a boat. When he was finished there were only a few small stacks of soggy debris on the dock. This was all that remained from a graceful 75-foot sailing yacht, an active business, and the captain's and crew's personal effects.
The captain said he was "not in the mood to talk" with the press.
