On Memorial Day, a boat exploded in a sandbar in the layered waterway at Fort Lauderdale, seriously injured nine adults and two children, officials said Monday night.
The explosion occurred at 5:45pm on May 26th at the Sandbar of the Lauderdale Yacht Club at 1725 SE 12th St., according to Frank Guzman, spokesman for Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue.
The area is popular as the shallow water on the sandbar allows sailors to secure the containers at low tide and walk into the water. On Monday, it arrived in space around 3:30pm.
The explosion threw everyone into the water on a boat. A nearby sailor helped rescue the victims until their first responders arrived, Guzman said.
All 11 people were taken from the scene to the Broward Health Medical Center. Ten patients were later taken by ambulance to the Miami Burn Center at Jackson Memorial Hospital.
Guzmann was unable to provide the size or type of the exploding boat, but said the incident is under investigation by the Fort Lauderdale Police Department, the U.S. Coast Guard and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
