Seven Hospitalized in Fire Aboard Yacht

Coast Guard investigators sorted through the wreck of a yacht Sunday that burned in Marina del Rey on Saturday night while a corporate Christmas party was underway on deck.

Officials from the National Transportation Safety Board were en route to Los Angeles to join the investigation of the fire, which Los Angeles County sheriff’s officials say was caused by a spark in the 70-foot Sundowner’s smokestack. Officials say seven people suffered minor to moderate burns and were hospitalized as a result of the 9:30 p.m. blaze.

Guests said the fire appeared to start somewhere in the smokestack as sparks began flying out the top. The smokestack appeared to catch fire inside, and the fire spread downward through each deck.

Crew members told the guests, employees of the money management firm Trust Company of the West, to hurry down to the main deck, and as the fire spread in a matter of two to three minutes, the guests were told to jump ship, said David Sandie, chief financial officer for TCW. The vessel was about 60 feet from shore at the time.

“The whole thing caught fire and burned down through every level of the boat,” Sandie said. “We all just had to jump for it.”

Coast Guard Lt. Karen Lloyd said the Sundowner had been inspected about two weeks ago. “They had their firefighting equipment on board,” she said. “There wasn’t time for the crew to put them in operation.”

Lloyd said the Sundowner has operated for 13 years without incident and is now awaiting certification in the face of new congressional safety standards. A woman reached by telephone at Sundowner Yacht Charters said “no comment” and hung up.