Overview

• A towed 23-foot cabin cruiser detonated near Margaritaville on Lake Lanier around 7 p.m. Friday, sending black smoke and five-foot flames into the air.
• Seven people aboard, including a 5-year-old, suffered second- and third-degree burns and were rescued by the boat operator and emergency responders before being taken to area hospitals in stable condition.
• Hall County Fire Rescue and Gainesville Fire Department Marine Rescue used a portable pump to put out the blaze and then towed the scorched vessel back to shore.
• Investigators from Hall County Fire Rescue and the Georgia Department of Natural Resources have opened a joint inquiry into what triggered the explosion.
• The incident has renewed safety concerns on Lake Lanier, Georgia’s largest reservoir and a major Fourth of July boating destination with a history of accidents.