Fort Lauderdale residents and curious onlookers witnessed an unusual scene yesterday afternoon as a 70-foot yacht found itself partially submerged in New River near Esplanade Park. According to WSVN, Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue units were swiftly dispatched to the sinking vessel situated behind the Performing Arts Center, at around 2 p.m.
TowBoatUS crews were on site, planning to quickly remove the submerged craft today. Environmental safety measures were put in place, as booms were deployed to contain any potential impact, revealing foresight in maintaining the integrity of the waterway. Illuminated markers were set up to ensure safe navigation for other vessels in the area during the nighttime hours.
The yacht was tethered to the city dock at the time of the incident, leading to minor damage to the infrastructure. The specifics of whether anyone was on board remain unclear, but there were no injuries reported in relation to this maritime mishap.
Local 10 added that the boat did in fact sink to the riverbed, but the flow of marine traffic managed to maintain unhindered. Greg May, a spokesperson for Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue, noted that, "the boat is located along a city dock and no injuries have been reported at this time." Marine units, along with SeaTow, were rallied to commence cleanup operations. As of now, the cause of the sinking remains a subject of investigation.
Residents and visitors can expect the New River near Esplanade Park to swiftly return to normalcy following the yacht's removal and any necessary environmental remediation. Authorities will continue to investigate to understand why such an incident occurred, seeking to prevent similar situations in the future.
