The remains of a yacht destroyed by a fire have now largely sunk at the historic Woolwich Dock in Sydney Harbour. Believed to be the 28.4-metre Andiamo built by Azzura, the incident happened on 3 September.
Firefighters arrived on the scene to find Andiamo fully engulfed in flames after they responded to an emergency call at around 20.03pm local time on 2 September.
Fire and Rescue New South Wales (FRNSW) superintendent Adam Dewberry explained that upon arrival the fire was threatening to spread to adjoining vessels until an onsite employee had them moved to safety with no damage.
Fire crews managed to contain the blaze by 6am but the yacht itself was destroyed and later sunk into the harbour. The FRNSW remained on site in case of reignition and to manage any potential pollution. Dewberry said that "over a 14-hour period we had 18 fire trucks and 72 firefighters rotate through the operation".
The blackened remains of Andiamo were still visible above the surface of the water on Sunday morning when the FRNSW handed the site back to the dock manager. The containment booms that had been placed at the entry to the dry dock are now being used as a mooring to contain any oils and other pollutants.
While tackling the blaze, firefighters filled the vessel with water, which is in part why she sunk. It also understood that she had recently been refuelled, which made the fire more difficult to contain.
Speaking to BOAT International, Dewberry said: "The owner or custodian of the vessel will engage a contractor to salvage the yacht and make good any pollution issues. This will be monitored by our maritime authority."
No injuries have been reported and the cause of the incident remains unknown. Once the yacht has been refloated and lifted out of the water, the fire will be investigated by the local police with assistance from a FRNSW fire expert.