Sebastien Gauthier Obituary, Death;- Authorities have confirmed the identity of the individual who perished following a boat explosion on Monday in Fort Lauderdale, which also resulted in serious injuries to several others.
Officials from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission have identified the deceased as 41-year-old Sebastien Gauthier from Quebec.
The incident occurred shortly before 6 p.m. at Lauderdale Marina, located at 1900 SE 15th Street. According to officials, the explosion took place after the engines of the 37-foot vessel were ignited. The resulting fire spread to an adjacent boat. Footage captured by Chopper6 depicted firefighters combating the fierce flames.
There were seven individuals aboard the vessel, as confirmed by FWC officials. Six of them were transported to the hospital, with several sustaining serious injuries. Divers conducted a search of the water for one remaining individual, who was later pronounced dead.
Surveillance footage captured the moments leading up to the explosion, which resulted in a rapidly expanding fire and thick black smoke rising into the sky. The cause of the explosion remains undetermined, and the fire is currently under investigation. Maria Sanz recounted to NBC6 that she and her family were on a boat directly behind the one that exploded.
“I initially thought it was a firecracker, but when I turned around, I realized it was a boat… We saw a significant amount of smoke,” she stated. “I was screaming, and they urged us to evacuate immediately.” Hope Dorman and her husband, visiting from Arkansas, described their frantic escape.
“We had been waiting for the water taxi and moved to a safer spot when we saw it approaching,” she explained. “Suddenly, it felt like a bomb had detonated. The boat exploded, and we ran for our lives as chaos ensued.”
