Miami yacht fire force passengers to jump ship

A group enjoying a company retreat in the waters off Miami Beach were forced to abandon ship when their chartered yacht suddenly caught fire on Friday, video shows.

The group were hanging out on the massive yacht about 30 feet away from the dock off Miami Beach Marina when the blaze erupted onboard just after noon, according to WSVN.

As the frightened retreaters noticed smoke and flames, they leapt off the boat one by one into Biscayne Bay, video shows, as huge plumes of black smoke soared into the sky.

According to city officials, a dockmaster at the marina helped remove those on the yacht before first responders arrived at the scene, WSVN reported. Firefighters used foam to put out the flames. 

No one was injured, officials said, but the yacht sustained significant damage.

It’s not clear what sparked the fire.

Those on board did not realize how large or serious the fire was initially.

“I thought they were kidding at first but then I realized this is how we are getting off this boat,” passenger Jamie Maloney told WPLG.

“There was the captain of the tourist boat and he is saying jump to my boat now,” a passenger from Serbia said. “We don’t see the whole back of the boat on fire.”

“We are very lucky, our captain was amazing,” Maloney added. “It’s due to him, the captain saved most of our belongings.”