POMPANO BEACH, Fla. – A 50-foot boat was destroyed in a fire Wednesday morning in Pompano Beach.
Local 10 News viewer Richard West sent Local 10 video of heavy flames coming from the boat that was docked behind a home in the 2700 block of Northeast 16th Street.
He said he heard crackling noises around 5:30 a.m. and then a couple of bangs.
WATCH: Raw footage of Pompano Beach boat fire, courtesy of Richard West.
West initially believed the sound was from garbage trucks, but stepped outside on his balcony after smelling smoke and saw that the entire boat was engulfed in flames.
West called 911 and Pompano Beach firefighters quickly arrived to douse the fire.
The sound startled neighbors, like Josie Limoli, who immediately rushed over to help.
“When I came outside, the smoke was going up. He’s an elderly man, and I was very concerned,” Limoli said.
Sky 10 was above the scene just before 6:30 a.m. as smoke was still billowing from the boat. Firefighters had used foam to extinguish the flames before the fire could spread to other boats or structures.
“I will say, Pompano Fire Rescue is the best I (have) ever seen,” Limoli said. “This man has a boat here, and another boat here, and the yacht went up, and nothing happened to the other boats. They were that good.”
Pompano Beach Fire Rescue spokeswoman Sandra King said no injuries were reported and the damage was contained to the boat.
While the boat did suffer extensive damage, Limoli said she’s just glad her neighbor wasn’t hurt.
“I was concerned for him because Mr. Bob is an all kind of do guy, and he would go out there and try to put the fire out himself, you know what I mean? So he’s shooken up and he’s very sad, but at least nobody got hurt,” Limoli said.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.