$3.5M 71 foot DeFever Yacht Burns in Daytona Beach

[Boz]

Daytona Beach FD and the USCG had their hands full this morning. Boat was still burning 4 hours later.

Story from the Orlando Sentinel

Edited May 22, 2010 by Boz

[Chisox]

Daytona Beach FD and the USCG had their hands full this morning. Boat was still burning 4 hours later.

Story from the Orlando Sentinel

And my guess is the main AC panel is in the master stateroom locker...

It's going to be hard to determine the cause as virtually everything that might have provided a clue as to the origins of the fire is now unrecognizable. I would venture to say that some portion of the vessels 120/240VAC wiring was at fault...older breaker, didn't trip when the heat buildup got to high, some circuit caught on fire, and the rest...

[Boz]

New info ~~

Burned-up yacht in Daytona Beach owned by music industry executive

Patrick J. Armstrong is credited with discovering and managing artists such as Lynyrd Skynyrd, Molly Hatchet, and Quiet Riot

By Gary Taylor, Orlando Sentinel

4:43 PM EDT, May 24, 2010

The owner of multi-million-dollar yacht that went up in flames Saturday at a Daytona Beach yacht club was identified by police today as music industry executive Patrick J. Armstrong of Altamonte Springs.

Armstrong, 63, told police he was asleep aboard the Princess Lauren, a 71-foot motor yacht, about 7 a.m. when he was awakened by a loud noise that came from inside a closet, according to a police report. He said when he opened the closet, it was filled with smoke.

He ran to the boat's front cabin and awakened Robert Martino, 58. The two left the vessel and called for help, police said.

Daytona Beach firefighters battled the blaze at the Sunset Harbor Yacht Club for hours. They were assisted by the Marine Patrol and U.S. Coast Guard.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation, the Daytona Beach Fire Department said today.

The yacht, built in 1998, was valued at $3 million to $3.5 million. It was undergoing a two-year upgrade, firefighters said.

Armstrong owns Maitland-based Parc Studios, which has a client list that includes the Backstreet Boys, N'Sync, Britney Spears, LFO, Mariah Carey, Linda Eder and Coolio.

He also owns Pat Armstrong & Associates, Inc., an artist management company, and Mister Sunshine Music, Inc., an international music publishing company.

He is credited with discovering and managing artists such as Lynyrd Skynyrd, Molly Hatchet, and Quiet Riot and he has managed artists such as Peter Noone of Herman's Hermits, Pat Travers, Bertie Higgins and Steven Seagal according to a biography on his company's website.

He also managed five-time World Boxing champion Hector "Macho" Camacho.

In 2002, Armstrong and Larry R. Stessel formed Titan Entertainment Group, and the two men own Parc Records, Inc., an independent music label based in Orlando.

According to his biography, Armstrong has acted as a financial manager and consultant to a number of businesses both in and outside of the entertainment industry, and is actively involved in a number of other business ventures, including commercial real estate holding and development.

Armstrong has served on the board of advisors of Full Sail Center for the Recording Arts, radio station WUCF at the University of Central Florida and Colonial Bank.

He is an investor and organizing director of Southern Community Bank.

He is a voting member of the National Association of the Recording Arts and Sciences, which presents the Grammy Awards, and the Country Music Association.

He received a law degree in 1974 from the Walter F. George School of Law at Mercer University.

[Chisox]

Where's Matchbox 20? :605_thumbs_up:

[EdB]

YOu may be right about the panel. What makes you say that, though?

Daytona Beach FD and the USCG had their hands full this morning. Boat was still burning 4 hours later.

Story from the Orlando Sentinel

And my guess is the main AC panel is in the master stateroom locker...

It's going to be hard to determine the cause as virtually everything that might have provided a clue as to the origins of the fire is now unrecognizable. I would venture to say that some portion of the vessels 120/240VAC wiring was at fault...older breaker, didn't trip when the heat buildup got to high, some circuit caught on fire, and the rest...