SW-INC-0535SeaWise Incidents

off bay of Palma - Spectacular fire on a sailboat in the Bay of Palma

verified · 1 sourceN
Vessel
off bay of PalmaVessel
When
2026
Outcome
Sunk
Summary

What happened.

On 28 August 2026 the charter yacht The Third Man, a 2024-built Dufour 530 Smart Electric, caught fire in the Bay of Palma, Mallorca. Local press reports the fire began in her lithium batteries. Nearby boats and jet skis took all five people aboard off unhurt, and the burning yacht sank under the supervision of Salvamento Maritimo.

Shortly before 5 pm on Friday 28 August 2026 fire broke out aboard The Third Man, a 53-ft Dufour 530 Smart Electric built in 2024 and managed by Dream Yacht Charter, in the Bay of Palma off Portitxol and Coll d'en Rabassa. According to Ultima Hora, the fire started in the yacht's lithium batteries, which power her electric propulsion. It spread quickly. The five people aboard were taken off by nearby boats and jet skis before the professional responders arrived; two Salvamento Maritimo vessels and a Guardia Civil boat then reached the scene and set up a safety perimeter. No injuries were reported. With the yacht beyond saving, Salvamento Maritimo supervised her sinking. The Guardia Civil has opened an investigation. It happened in a busy bay in daylight, with help close by. The same fire at sea, at night and with no one nearby, would have left five people with very little time and nowhere to go but the water.

SeaWise noteA lithium battery fire does not behave like a galley fire. It can reignite, it gives off toxic gas, and a handheld extinguisher may do little. If the battery bank is burning, the drill is to get everyone off, upwind and clear, and call for help at once. The boat is already lost.
Lessons learned

What it teaches.

  • 1
    On a boat with a large lithium battery bank, treat any battery fire as an abandon-ship event. Brief the crew before departure: lifejackets on, dinghy ready, everyone off upwind.
    fire abandon ship
  • 2
    Know where your battery compartment is, what its alarm sounds like, and where the isolator is. Early warning is the only real defence against a thermal runaway.
    fire on watch
  • 3
    The nearest help is usually other boats. In a busy anchorage or bay, a Mayday on channel 16 brings them fast; here they had all five off before the rescue services arrived.
    fire rescue
Sources

Where this comes from.

News· EU/Med sailing newsEspectacular incendio de un velero en la bahía de PalmaVisit ↗

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Record IDSW-INC-0535
Curated bySeaWise editorial
Confidenceverified · 1 source
Record typeIncident

About SeaWise records: We catalogue sailing emergencies with structured metadata and link to primary sources rather than republishing them. Individual crew names are anonymised by default— sources we link to may name them publicly; SeaWise refers to roles ("the skipper", "the crew") on our pages. Submitter identities are always private.