$24 Million Up In Flames: Multi-Million Yacht Fire Burns While Drone Records Overhead (Video)
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to watch $24 million go up in flames? Well, you might just get your wish if you watch the video above.
According to ABC affiliate KGTV 10 in San Diego, the yacht on fire in the video above was worth $24 million before an accident in a San Diego County shipyard severely devalued the vessel.
“The blaze broke out on the Polar Bear, a pleasure yacht that had been at the shipyard undergoing repairs for several weeks. Heavy plumes of black smoke could be seen across the South Bay. About 100 workers on site at the time were evacuated.”
“The fire started up near the bow, one of the hoses blew out, so that caught on fire, and I saw fire coming out of one of the holes,” marina worker Chris Gonzalez said. “Workers told 10News it may have been a welding accident, but that was not confirmed.”
KNSD-TV 7, NBC’s San Diego affiliate, spoke with the owner of the yacht. The owner, 79-year-old Larry Jodsass of Minnesota, told the station that he was not angry about the suspected accident, but instead was sad to see his $24 million yacht go up in flames.
“Am I angry? No. Anger is not the right word. It was my toy, my wonderful, beautiful piece of equipment. I think it’s the most beautiful boat that ever has been built.”
The drone footage was posted to the YouTube account of Kurt Roll. There has been no information released on whether Roll could face problems with the Federal Aviation Administration as other pilots of drones have faced in different states in recent months.
The only fine ever imposed against a drone pilot/photographer to date was dismissed back in March, The Inquisitr reported at the time, calling into question how much the feds actually want to pursue and fine drone pilots. The fine was dismissed by a federal judge, though the FAA said it would appeal the decision.
It is just the latest in a long fight over drone regulations, The Inquisitr‘s Jan Omega reported.
“The agency had been working for a decade on regulations to give commercial drones access to the national airspace without endangering manned aircraft and the public. Because of the agency’s slow progress, Congress passed legislation back in 2012 directing the FAA to safely integrate drones of all sizes into U.S. airspace by the end of September 2015. Unfortunately for the agency, they won’t be able to meet their deadline.”
[Image via Screenshot]
