Twist after men are forced to jump from flaming luxury boat
It has been revealed a boat that exploded and burned on Sydney Harbour on Tuesday was not the only deadly threat to the four men onboard who were forced to jump for their lives.
Maritime Services Boating Officer Troy Polidano was first on the scene to pull the fishermen to safety, and according to him, there was no time to lose.
“There was a shark, just only 20 or 30 metres away, the fin was coming up,” he revealed.
The 10-metre luxury cruiser caught fire about 1pm and as the flames engulfed the vessel, the men were left with no choice but to dive into the ocean.
It’s thought the fire started after an electrical fault, destroying the boat with an estimated value of up to $60,000.
The four men, three in their 40s and one aged 67, frantically treaded water until they were collected by Mr Polidano.
“They were a little bit distressed, very wet, the vessel just caught alight, unable to contain it, so they luckily put their life jackets on straight away,” Mr Polidano said.
On Wednesday salvage crews got to work on what was left of the vessel.
There was no time for the four man crew to grab anything with the majority of their belongings left onboard.
The boat’s skipper took to social media to thank his rescuers in the wake of the incident.
‘Thank you to all the officers who helped out today when my boat caught fire at the Heads,” he wrote.
“You guys were unbelievable. We are lucky to have a team like you.”
Salvage teams and insurance companies will now get to work on removing the hazard left behind as they liaise with Maritime Services.
