Image Credit: Royal Thai Navy

Thai officials are investigating the cause of a fire that engulfed the 34-metre sailing yacht Obsession II whilst moored in Chalong Bay, Phuket yesterday (20 May) afternoon.

Originally delivered in 2002 as the flagship yacht of French yard CIM, Obsession II was being used as a charter vessel when the fire occurred.

No injuries have been reported from the incident, although its mast has been completely destroyed in the blaze.

According to the Bangkok Post, the alarm was raised by the Royal Thai Navy around 15:00 local time, which sent two boats to the scene. The Navy reported the Obsession was unmanned, anchored and “continuously burning”. Allegedly, the crew had gone ashore to buy supplies at the time the fire broke out.

The yacht burned of almost four hours before firefighters finally got it under control. Firefighting efforts initially focussed on using the onboard extinguishing equipment, before being forced to leave the yacht for their own safety.

The full extent of the damage is currently being assessed, whilst the cause of the fire is currently unknown. 

#BangkokPost: Marine officials are investigating the cause of a fire that extensively damaged a luxury yacht moored in Chalong Bay on Monday afternoon. #Thailand #yacht #travel #firehttps://t.co/EWlQZsU7q7 pic.twitter.com/vLzMGomLm1

— Bangkok Post (@BangkokPostNews) May 21, 2024

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