‘I'm in the water.' 911 calls reveal moments after deadly Broward boat explosion
A flurry of newly released 911 calls shed light on a chaotic and fatal boat explosion off Fort Lauderdale on Memorial Day. Some callers witnessed watching the blast from the shore; others were in the water screaming for help.
On May 26, a 39-foot Sea Ray burst into flames in the Intracoastal Waterway, near the large sandbar by the New River. Fourteen people were aboard, but only eleven people — including two young children — were hospitalized with injuries. Some were taken to Jackson Memorial Hospital's burn unit in Miami, Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue said.
READ MORE: Boat explodes off the beach in Fort Lauderdale, fire-rescue says
Among the injured, Joshua Fifi, a 29-year-old who lived in Fort Lauderdale, died from his injuries.
One of the first 911 callers witnessed the blast from the Lauderdale Yacht Club and described the loud explosion, followed by flames and billowing smoke, according to the latest release from Fort Lauderdale Police Department.
'These people flew off the boat,' he said in the call. 'I just saw these people panicking and in the water.'
Another caller on a different vessel reported that people were jumping off the sinking boat to the dispatcher. She also began screaming over to them, 'Get off the boat!'
One call began with screams and crying, followed by a woman desperately telling dispatchers, 'I'm in the water.'
The woman continued to say there was a 'marine emergency' as a boat was on fire. Of those on board, she said there was a passed-out passenger and a pet.
'We're all separated,' she said, adding that nearby boaters were helping them as several people had been burned. 'We have kids on board.'
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