A MOTOR cruiser is currently on fire in a Suffolk harbour.
A MOTOR cruiser has been destroyed by fire at a Suffolk harbour this afternoon.
Four fire crews attended the blaze on the 25ft boat at Martlesham Creek Boatyard in Church Lane, Martlesham at lunchtime.
The owner of the boat, David Hamilton, was lucky to walk away from the incident unscathed as an electrical fault caused a spark to ignite as he was re-fuelling his boat, called Spirit, with petrol.
The first crew on the scene, from Woodbridge fire station, said they were faced with flames reaching ten to 15ft.
Other boat owners rushed to help Mr Hamilton as he desperately tried to fight the fire.
They tried using fire extinguishers to tame the flames, and pushed other boats, moored alongside Spirit, a safe distance from the encroaching fire which started to scorch the wooden pier.
One witness told how he heard a huge explosion before watching as flames engulfed the boat.
Ipswich and District group manager Geoff Pyke, based at Princes Street fire station, said firefighters were concerned with tackling the flames but also making safe a number of gas cylinders on board.
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