Brand-New $11 Million Luxury Superyacht Destroyed in a Fire at a Prestigious Shipyard

If you thought you were having a bad day, think again. At least you didn’t hear that the beautiful yacht you were waiting to take to the sea for the first time was engulfed by flames. The terrible incident took place on the morning of January 11, when a brand-new 98.4-foot (30 meters) luxury yacht got caught in a serious fire that broke out at a shipyard in Italy.

That was no ordinary shipyard, either, but one of the most prestigious in the world. The world-renown Ferretti Group has an extensive portfolio of famous brands, such as Ferretti Yachts, Riva, Pershing, Wally, and CRN, and its premium vessels are built only for high-end customers around the world. With a history going back to 1968, this prestigious Italian boatbuilder has no less than six shipyards across Italy.

The Cattolica production site, where the fire broke out, started operating in 2001. Unfolding over 14,000 square meters (150,690 square feet), this shipyard integrates 16 assembly stations, with a layout that was inspired by an island construction model so that each workstation is entirely independent. This allows for up to 16 luxury yachts measuring 98 feet to be built at the same time at Cattolica.

Corriere Romagna reported that five fire brigade teams had to fight the flames and that it took hours to stop the fire. Ferretti hasn’t made any official declarations on what caused the fire. Fortunately, nobody got hurt except the brand-new superyacht that was ready for delivery and worth more than $11 million (€10 million).

Considering the fact that yachts are notorious for the extended construction time, this incident is even more unfortunate. The unlucky owner that never got his boat will most likely have to wait another year for a new yacht.